The 12 Strizers
by Erzats
Summary: 2 years after the war with Alvarez, peace returned to Fiore. But for the mages of Fairy Tail and their friends, it won't last. 12 warriors coming from an unkown place are coming for them. Who are they and what do they want ? They'll learn it the hard way. OCs, created by me. Multiple Pairing (Nalu, Gruvia, Gale, Rowen, HappyxCharla and others). Advices welcomed.
1. Chapter 1 : Those who watch

**Ok, Here we are for a new story. Before starting, I need to explain some things. First, it's post-canon, but the team don't go on the 100 years quest. Secondly, the OCs are special for me, since I created them a long time ago when I was a kid, and kept upgrading them every once in a while. If you have some questions or ideas for them, tell me.**

 **Also, this is a translation. I have a French version on my profile and I'll make them live like that : a new French chapter then a new translation. About one new chapter every week (week 1 : French, week 2 : English, week 3 : French, etc).**

 **Let's go !**

 **I don't own Fairy Tail, just my OCs.**

 **Chapter 1 : Those who watch from the shadows**

 _Italic : thoughts_

It's been exactly 2 years since the end of the war against Alvarez Kingdom. 2 years since Zeref and Acnologia's death and also 2 years since Natsu ceased to be, in a way, END. In Magnolia, which had been rebuilt and was now more beautiful than ever, everything wasn't so peaceful. Indeed, the city, as well as the rest of the country prepared for the second anniversary of their victory against Alvarez. The kingdom's guild were particularly active, having played, for the most part, a vital role in this conflict. Moreover, during the last guild's master meeting, it had been proposed that all the guilds meet to celebrate the event and obviously, the chosen gathering place was the guild of the fairies. Which explained why everybody ran in all directions in the streets of Magnolia, hurrying to make sure that everything was ready for the big party in the evening, the beginning of the festivities which would be made at the guild by a speech pronounced by Queen Hisui E. Fiore in persons.

Naturally, the mages of Fairy Tail looked forward to it too, wanting just one thing, for the party to begin. But everyone was not at the guild yet. It was, for example, the case of Lucy Heartfilia, who was at the moment under the shower, smiling and, even if she did not show it as much as some of her companions, also looked forward to this evening. Going out of her shower as usual, meaning being only covered with a towel covering her breast and going to mid-thigh, she went to her living room but obviously.

\- "Yo."

It wasn't empty, or at least it not anymore.

\- "GET THE FUCK OUT !" she shouted, her face now as red as a tomato, sending a good old Lucy Kick in a well-known salmon haired Dragon Slayer. The latter got up, a footprint engraved on his face.

\- "What ? What did I do ?", he asked, not understanding why she was so mad.

\- "When you're normal, you aren't supposed to get in someone place when said person is taking a shower ! Specially if it's a girl !" she explained, as red as ever, of embarrassment and anger, trying to make him understand that it was normal for her to be mad, giving the current situation, even if she knew it was a lost cause. While she talked, she had slightly curled up, trying to cover her body as much as she could with her towel.

\- "Chill out, it's not like you were a stranger to me." He said, drawing another shout from the stellar mage.

\- "THAT'S NOT THE POINT !"

\- "So what ? It's because you're naked under this." He tried again, gesturing toward the towel. "You know, I already saw you naked, I don't see why you should be embarrassed."

For Lucy, who just turn crimson, more from anger than embarrassment, it was the last straw and she did something Natsu did not expected. She opened her window, pulled him up by his collar and gathering all the strength she could, she throw him through the window, straight into the waterway in front of her apartment.

\- "GET OUT !" she roared while Natsu, shocked by what his blond friend just did, did nothing to avoid the water. Once the Salamander was in the water, Lucy closed her window, took some time to calm down and get herself ready, at last.

/- Later -/

 _"He is such an idiot !"_

That though resumed what Lucy was thinking about since she got out of her apartment. Her cheeks still got a light shade of pink thinking about what happened and she couldn't get the fire mage out of her mind. She noticed that a few years ago, more precisely since they came back from Tenrou, her relation with Natsu changed but she was lost. She couldn't lie to herself anymore : she was in love with him. But she tried to forget those feelings since to her, there was no way Natsu will ever feel the same way. But how could she try to forget, when fate kept throwing her in embarrassing situations ? She's already been naked in front of Natsu, often her naked body against his and she was once naked against him, naked too. And her body couldn't stop liking those kind of situations. But it wasn't the only reason she tried to forget those feelings. He probably didn't even know what 'being in love' meant. Furthermore, he always act like a kid and despite all those time he saw her naked, he never reacted, like he didn't found her attractive, and it hurt her, in a way. Deciding that it was enough thinking, she shook her head, trying to get rid of those though and focus on this day.

/- At the same time, with Natsu -/

Natsu was grumpy. He was actually heading to the guild, still wet thanks to his unwanted bath in the waterway a few minutes ago. If he was surprised by the strength Lucy displayed, what was grinding his gears was the effect of Lucy's reaction on himself. It wasn't the first time she was upset because he came to her house uninvited, even if the ejection by the window was a first, but he felt bad about it, and that was new. When he though about it, he realized that he felt weird when he was around her. And it's been like this for a few years, to be more precise, ever since he saw her 'dead' before going berserk on Gray during the war with Alvarez. Now, it was like upsetting her was the worse thing in the world and on the other side, her smile was it's best. Also, he felt physically weird around her, like he had knots in his stomach. And he had a hard time seeing her with other guys, wanting to beat them up just for going near her. He had reached a point where he could get into a fight with anyone with almost no reason to. He couldn't understand why he was like this.

 _"It's probably nothing. It'll pass if I give it the time. I better hurry to the guild. I'm starving."_ It's on that though that he sped up his pace to reach the guild.

/- Guild Hall -/

If the city could be compared to an anthill in term of activities, the guild was an anthill in which someone kicked. It was a 100 times worse. Makarov was shouting order without stopping, running everywhere to make sure that everything was perfect for tonight. Fairy Tail's reputation was normally really important for him, but now, the fact that so many people, including the queen herself, will be here wasn't helping him in calming down his nerve. It was just a little past noon but he was already tired of shouting, but wasn't stopping either way. Everyone was working, giving their all to make sure that everything was ready for tonight. Decorating the guild, moving tables, building the scene where the princess will give her speech but also the exterior of the guild. Indeed, Makarov was so bent on doing the best he could that he made sure to install tables outside, so everyone could enjoy the party. Lucy was actually helping the girls in putting all the decorations while the boys were moving everything that needed to be moved : chairs, tables, etc. There was even a group cleaning up the guild from the floor to the ceiling. So, with so much to do, we could think that the mages would be to occupied to do what they were the best at : destroying everything. But someone was about to put fire to the powder.

\- "HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA ! Seriously ? HAHAHAHAHAHA !" Gray had to put down the table he was carrying with Alzack, folded in half, laughing to tears about what he just heard. "In the water ? Seri-HAHAHA !" He couldn't even finish his sentences because of his laughing. Apparently, Happy, while looking for Natsu this morning, saw everything when Lucy threw the fire mage out of her apartment and, just like he always do, he told it to everyone in the guild. Natsu was trying to keep a hold of himself since he promised he wouldn't do anything violent before tomorrow (even if he promised under the pressuring of Erza's sword), but Gray's laughter, now joined by the other who just heard the story, was getting on his nerves seriously and he knew he was close to snap. The girls looked at the scene, not knowing how they should feel. On one hand, they were proud that their Lucy was able to throw a dragon slayer like Natsu through her window, but seeing Natsu reddening with each passing second, not because of embarrassment but because of his body heat skyrocketing, they were afraid that he unleashed his frustration, burning down the guild in the process. Lucy wasn't looking at the scene, the voice of Natsu was enough to bring back what happened this morning. Blushing once again because of that, she didn't saw Mirajane, looking at her pink cheeks with a smile far too nice to be genuine.

\- "Lucy, why are you blushing so much ?"

\- "Huh ? What ? I'm not blushing, what are you talking about ?" Lucy tried to dodge Mirajane, but alas, she failed.

\- "It's true that you are weird today." Agreed Levy, getting closer to her best friend, worried. "Lu-chan, are you sure everything's ok ?"

\- "I'm sure it's related to the fact that he did something when he came to your home this morning." Add Cana, without really looking at the blonde. Against the card mage words, Lucy could feel herself blushing heavily, turning her head to face her.

\- "H-how do you know ?" she asked, eyes wide.

\- "I didn't, but it's not the first time he have done this, and also, you just confessed it." Answered Cana, an evil grin on her face as she turned to face Lucy. "I have to say, even if it's not the first time you unleashed your anger on him for sneaking into your apartment, throwing him out the window into the river is on another level, so something different happened today."

A sharp breath was heard, the group turning to see Mirajane, eyes wide, hands on her face, as if she just understood something deep.

\- "Don't tell me… He tried to kiss you, is that it ?"

\- "W-what ? No ! Not at all !" countered Lucy, now as red as Erza's hair.

\- "Oh. So he just flirt with you ?" continued the barmaid, disappointed and hopeful at the same time.

\- "HE DIDN'T !" shouted Lucy, not understanding what was the point. "He didn't do anything, I just… had a more violent reaction than normal, that's all." The girls were ready to keep on with the questions when Makarov addressed the whole guild.

\- "Great, everything is in place." Announced the master, getting everyone's attention, Lucy thanking him for his intervention, getting her out of a situation she couldn't have avoided. "Now that the guild is ready…"

\- "… I can make the ice princess pay !" Natsu said, his hands already on fire, turning to face the ice mage. "Now come on, I'll beat y…"

\- "STOP THAT RIGHT NOW !" roared Makarov, flattening Natsu with a giant fist before going on. "So as I was saying, now that the guild is ready, I have to tell you a few things about tonight. First, if many of those guest are friends who knows how rowdy we can be, it's not the case for some of them and I don't want the party to be ruined because SOME people couldn't resist fighting each other like some violent apes." At that, he gave a dark stare at Gray and Natsu, the latter still on the ground since Makarov calm him down. "Did I make myself clear ?"

A ground shaking YES was heard through the guild and Makarov nodded, glad that he was understood, before getting off the table he was on. Once the last decoration were installed, the girls decide to go do some shopping, to find something to wear for tonight, leaving the boys behind. They stayed in silence until Luxus began talking.

\- "Well, since we have the rest of the afternoon for us, we could use that time to have some fun. You're in ?"

\- "I'm in only if that iceberg get dressed." Answered Natsu, pointing at Gray.

\- "What are you … Ah shit !" Gray began before stopping, since he indeed was in underwear. "Where are those clothes, damnit ?!"

\- "While we are out, we should buy him some glue, to make sure he doesn't got naked during the party." Snickered Gajeel and seeing Gray was about to retort, Makarov threw them all outside the guild before they decided to fight, destroying everything they put in place.

/- With the girls -/

\- "WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU ? THAT'S OUT OF THE QUESTION ?"

The voice rang in the shop, making everyone in the shop and the street outside jump out of surprise. Charla just shouted on Cana and for a really good reason (at least for her, it is one). When the girl reached this shop, looking for dress for the night, they spread in the store shelves, looking for what they wanted. But what should have been a good old shopping spree took a turn for the worse when Wendy, as red as ruby, opened her mouth to ask a question no one expected.

\- "Uh. C-Can someone help me ? I, I need t-to buy a… bra ?" She asked that while looking at her feet but the others reaction was expected. They looked at her wide eyed and turned their heads to Charla, as if to confirm that it wasn't a dream. And the Exceed answered their unsaid question.

\- "Yes, you heard that right. Let's say that I couldn't deny it anymore. But I won't let her wear anything."

The mages then shrieked in glee, as if they didn't heard the Exceed last comment. They were all really happy for Wendy. She have always been complexed by her bust size and it seemed like in the last 2 years, puberty finally decided it was time to give Wendy what she wanted, since she was now 15 years old (A.N. : I hope I got that right, sorry if that's not it but I'll keep it like that in this story). If some of the mages, mainly Mirajane, had tears in her eyes, proud to see their sweet Wendy growing up, others, mainly Cana, had others project. The alcoholic disappeared in the store while the others were helping Wendy picking up the good kind of underwear for her. When she was back, everything went down.

\- "This is perfect." Said the card mage, showing them a set which made Wendy go crimson and for a good reason since the set wasn't classic underwear, but skimpy lingerie, leaving nothing for the imagination. Which led us to Charla's reaction, the cat standing in-between Wendy and Cana.

\- "Come on, don't be so stuck up." She said, as if what she did was normal. "It will look great on her."

\- "ARE YOU OUT OF YOUR MIND ?! PUT THOSE THINGS BACK WHERE YOU FOUND THEM !"

\- "T-thanks Cana, b-but it's a l-little too much." Answered Wendy, who couldn't even look at Cana, a disappointed look appearing on the brunette face.

\- "Also, it's the kind of underwear you use when you want to seduce someone and she have no reason to seduce anyone." Said Levy, siding with Carla.

\- "Exactly. And I know Wendy, she is not the kind of girl who would want to flirt with boys, she is still a little young for it. And she have no one in mind for that." Saying this, she had her back to Wendy and then couldn't see her blushing once more, like if she was hiding something. But the other girls, mainly Cana and Mirajane, saw it and knew they will have to look at her closely to know exactly what she is hiding. After finally choosing underwear Carla approved of, they all bought what they needed and then head back home, to prepare for the night.

/- That night -/

\- "Two years ago, our kingdom underwent the worse invasion in his history, leading to an open war with Alvarez Kingdom." The queen Hisui E. Fiore just began her speech, addressing the people gathered in front of the guild. "During this war, we lost a lot. Citizens fallen on the battlefields, many places reduced to nothing but rubbles and even now, our country bear the traces of this conflict. But thanks to the joint efforts of those inhabitants, of our military forces and the kingdom mages guild, we managed to win. But it wasn't just a victory on an enemy coming from another country : it was also a fight against the two biggest threat our kingdom has ever known : the great black mage Zeref and the dragon of apocalypse Acnologia. The war proved that the kingdom citizens were ready to do everything they could to protect their freedom and rights and we are all gathered here today to remember that day, to honor those who disappeared that day and our freedom to live. Now, let the festivities begin !" A that, she made a hand gesture and fireworks began lighting up the sky all across the kingdom, launching the festivities.

In the guild hall, where everyone from Fairy tail but also Blue Pegasus, Mermaid Heel, Lamia Scale, Sabertooth, Quattro Cerberus and even the member of the now disbanded Crime Sorciere, the mood was high. Everybody was having fun, talking to their friends of the other guild, laughing, eating without a care in the world. Natsu, standing by the food table, was eating a fire chicken, while looking at Lucy, who was talking with Yukino. The blonde look at him a second before frowning and going back to Yukino.

 _"What did I do, seriously ? Why is she acting like that ?"_ When he saw Sting approaching the girl, he could feel something in him telling him to make the Light Dragon Slayer eat his own stomach. Shaking his head, he turned his head. "Why I'm reacting like that ? Maybe a protecting instinct, after all, we have done a lot of thing together. It must be that." Satisfied by his explanation, he got back to his meal. Lucy, on her side, was thinking once again about Natsu, and more precisely, about what she was feeling about him. She took a decision : if Natsu kept acting like a kid, she'll stay friend with him but won't go any further? This new resolution taken, she looked around the guild, taking a glass of champagne from a young server with square glasses. She saw Erza talking with Jellal, theirs faces slightly red, which made Lucy giggle. She also saw Levy, her hand in Gajeel's, Gray with Juvia near him, their relation kinda blurry : while Gray still couldn't define what they were, Juvia was already talking wedding. She kept looking around the guild, seeing Wendy talking with Romeo and Cherrya, the bluenette looking at the young fire mage, Mirajane looking at them from afar, standing next to Luxus, Cana drinking with Bacchus, but she stopped on Happy, standing next to Charla and Panther Lily in their human form, next to 2 others human sized cat, one brown and the other green in a frog costume. Lucy tapped on Yukino shoulder, then pointing at the two, Yukino understanding what she wanted to ask.

\- "Yes, those are Lector and Frosch. They trained with Master Sting et Rogue."

Lucy nodded, since she just wanted a confirmation about it and she saw Natsu coming up to them, gawking at the Sabertooth Exceed.

\- "Wow ! You two have a fight mode too ? Awesome !" Natsu's eyes were shining but what he didn't saw was Happy, who seemed hurt by the way Natsu was acting toward the others Exceeds. Another proof for Lucy that Natsu had no consideration and tact. She sighed, which got Gray's attention who saw the scene and guessed why the stellar mage could think about. And since a party at Fairy Tail was never normal, that's when things got down.

\- "Hey, Elsa !" taunted Natsu, Gray looking at him with a glare.

\- "You have a problem, pyromaniac ?"

\- "Yes. You and your exhibitionism. Go put some clothes on."

Gray, who was indeed shirtless, just taunted back.

\- "Try to learn not to hurt people when you talk before teaching me a lesson." Gray countered, thinking about Happy, hurt by the way Natsu act about the new form of Frosch and Lector.

\- "You wanna fight, ice prick ?!"

\- "Sorry, but no. I'm not a wild animal."

\- "I'm not an animal !" shouted the fire mage before jumping on Gray. And then, a big brawl began in the guild, dragging along member from all the guild. This comforted Lucy in what she though about Natsu being just a kid. The brawl kept growing, dragging along poor innocent people like the server. Hisui was looking at the scene, giggling a little while Makarov was crying for the guild reputation he though was ruined.

/- In a small clearing not too far from Magnolia-/

11 people where gathered, looking at some sort of screen where was displayed what actually happened in the guild. Right now, they couldn't see anything since the camera had been dragged in the brawl.

\- "Well, it looks like we won't see anything more, now." said a young man, eating popcorn.

\- "Yeah looks like it. AND STOP EATING POPCORN, YOU LAZY FUCK !" shouted someone else, with a deeper voice.

\- "Calm down guys. It's time to move. Let's see if those guys have what it take." Glowing in different color, they looked at the screen, small grin on their faces as they thought about their plans.

 **OK, first chapter of this new story. I hope you liked it. Reviews are welcomed, good or bad, even advices.**

 **Next time : An unexpected visit and a mysterious restaurant. Those who came from elsewhere. The first of the 12 threats. Welcome in the Hell Garden !**


	2. Chapter 2 : A strange restaurant

**Hey guys. Ready for the second chapter ? Because I am.**

 **I know that in the last one I said that I was going to alternate between French and English but well, I kinda lack ideas for my 5** **th** **chapter in French so, I decided to translate the four already existing chapter before going back to French and then I'll do the "French English French etc".**

 **Also, I have to say that I'm trying some way to translate the fic faster. So I'm sorry if it's grammatically perfect.**

 **Now let's stop talking and do some writing.**

 **Chapter 2 : Mysterious things and a restaurant**

/- Magnolia -/

The day after the party, the hall of Fairy Tail remained well crowded. The members of the other guilds were still here, even if they were packing their bags to leave soon and return to their home. Lucy was at the bar with Yukino and Levy, talking whereas the rest of the mages attended to their usual activities. Lucy couldn't stop herself from looking at Happy, who was far from his usual cheerfulness. The poor cat must have been more affected by what Natsu had said and done the night before regarding the new forms of Frosch and Lector. Happy had always been a little jealous of Panther and Carla for their fighting form but he said to himself that it was not so bad if he didn't have it, but if seeing the Exceeds of Sabertooth having the same kind of form was putting him ill-at-ease, it was the reaction of Natsu that hurt him the most. Lucy could see it herself and that confirmed what she recently had thought about Natsu: That the Dragon Slayer had no consideration and no limit, speaking and acting without any consideration for the others or the consequences it could have.

Talking about the pink haired firebrand, he was in Makarov office, probably being punished for his behavior during the party last night. When finally Makarof got out of his office, he was dragging Natsu by his collar, the latter traumatized by the punishment which he had just undergone. While the guild was quiet and the members of the other guilds got ready to go back to their respective cities, they received a totally unforeseen visit. Much to everyone surprise, Warrod Sequen, member of the magic council and one of the founder of Fairy Tail, stood in the entrance of the building. By his side stood his colleague and former ace of Lamia Scale, Jura Neekis.

\- "Jura ? Warrod ? But what are you doing here?" Asked Makarov, more than surprised seeing 2 members of the magic council coming up to the guild personally. Then, remembering what happened yesterday, his face change to wear an expression of intense fear. _" Not. Do not tell me that the queen complained about the brawl ? We are done ! "_

\- " PLEASE ! " Began Makarov, begging both mages who looked at him with wide eyes. " Don't dissolve the guild! I'll punish those who did it! All that it is necessary but don't do that! "

\- " Uh … What? " Began Jura, not understanding what Makarof was talking about.

\- " You are because the queen complained about yesterday's fight, isn't it ? "

\- " Totally! You've gone too far this time !" Continued Warrod, a severe expression on his wood-like face.

\- " THEN WE ARE DONE FOR !? "

\- " No ! It is a joke ! " Answered the man-tree, his face crossed by a big smile, quite proud of his doubtful joke whereas Makarof, and the other mages, collapsed on the ground because of the stress accumulated for nothing.

\- " WHAT? But why are you here then?" Asked Makarof, whose stress had decreased but didn't totally disappeared: whatever the reason is, if two members of council came personally, it's certainly not for nothing.

\- " To tell the truth, the queen was very amused by this 'incident', but we actually came for something else. Something concerning everybody here. " said Jura, turning to all the mages who were now completely listening before he and Warrod began their explanations.

\- " A few days ago, we received a report which mentioned a peak of strange and unknown energy in the center of the kingdom, a few kilometers away from here. Numerous testimonies assert that about ten non-identified object felled from the sky just after an explosion rang there. "

\- " The testimonies diverge a lot about the nature of these objects. Some people think of human beings, others thinks those are robots, some of them even talked about alien. " continued Warrod. "However, one of these witnesses seemed to know a little too much about it, and we had the sensation that he did not tell us everything thus we investigated and we discovered that he is the owner of a restaurant. "

At that, Natsu, who was half lethargic till now, got up all of a sudden. " Did someone said restaurant ?"

\- " Go back to sleep, matchstick. You are less tiresome when you are out cold. "

While a new fight burst between the flame and ice mages, the others ignored them to re-concentrate on Warrod and Jura.

\- " With all due respect, Jura-san " began Lyon, addressing his former colleague of Lamia Scale. "I don't see why having a restaurant is something strange ? "

\- " What makes him suspicious, it's that this restaurant came out of nowhere overnight, and more exactly just 2 days after this peak was recorded. And this restaurant is situated a few kilometers from the place where these unknown bodies fell. There is too much coincidences. " Ended Jura.

This revelation made worried looks appeared on the faces of the present mages, which exchanged looks and murmured between them until Sting speaks.

\- "All this is fine, but that does not really explain why you came so far just to say it to us directly."

\- "The council would like to send a delegation to go investigate on this restaurant owner to find what he really know about this. The delegation will have to consist of mages of various guilds and especially of powerful mages. After all, we know nothing of what he hides over there." Explained Warrod frowning, worried about what could happened over there.

\- "And by taking members of several guilds, you make sure that guilds work together by putting them in the same boat." Continued Kagura before raising her head to ask a question. "And who will be the members of this delegation?"

\- "The council thought of Lyon of Lamia Scale, Sting of Sabertooth, Natsu of Fairy Tail and Kagura of Mermaid Heel."

The concerned people looked at each other before Natsu opened his mouth.

\- "OK, I am fired up ! So, what are we waiting for ?"

\- "Yes, I agree. " Agreed Lyon, much to the surprise of the others, not expecting for him to agrees with the Salamander. " The faster we go, the faster we can … "

\- " … Eat. If it's a restaurant, we might as well make the most out of it. " Everybody collapsed at what Natsu just said, but some got up fast.

\- " CAN YOU STOP THINKING WITH YOUR FUCKING STOMACH, DUMBASS?! " shouted Gray, Natsu not having time to answer since they were stopped by Erza.

\- " CALM DOWN, YOU TWO! THAT'S NOT THE MOMENT !"

\- "A-Aye". Answered both rivals, arm in arm.

\- "…Finish it." Finally ended Lyon, whose sentence had remained unsettled.

\- " Well in any case, let's go. Where do we have to go exactly? " Asked Kagura, addressing Jura.

\- " At Karista. To get there, the best way is to take the train."

\- " Very well, let's go the guys. No need to waste time. " Ordered the swordswoman before leaving, dragging Natsu and Sting behind her, both Dragons Slayers clearly not motivated at the idea of getting in what was for them a torture device. While they walked toward the station, a man observed them from an alley, a sadistic smile forming on his face.

\- " Everything is going as we expected. I hope that you will be up to it, mages, or that meal could be your las. " Said the stranger before disappearing in the shadows of the alley.

/- Karista -/

The train had just arrived at Karista's station. Our group got off the train, Kagura dragging Dragons Slayers by the collar, always under the influence of their travel sickness, their respective Exceeds flying by their side, Lyon looking at the scene slightly amused. When they went out of the station, they inquired with the inhabitants to try to know more about the restaurant where they had to go.

\- "Sorry". Began Lyon, addressing an inhabitant. "There should be a restaurant which opened recently around here. Could you tell us where we can find it ?"

\- "Yes no problem. You will find him outside of the city, in the southeast."

\- "What is it you could tell us about this restaurant?"

\- "Set apart the fact that it has an enormous success, I don't know. Nobody here has nothing to add on the quality of the establishment." On these words, the inhabitant went away, leaving behind him perplexed mages.

\- "Can this restaurant really have so much success by having opened just a few days ago ?" Wondered the Dragon Slayer of light, turning to his companions.

\- "It is possible. But with all that seems to take place in the region, it is more than suspicious." Confirmed Kagura by frowning.

Once their information were gathered, the mages left in the direction of the restaurant. Arrived on the place, the 4 mages and 2 cats were surprised by the beauty of the building.

It was kind of looking like a villa, completely built in stone of diverse sizes and colors. Numerous windows with green shutters which seemed to merge in trees and bushes which surrounded the house. A staircase cut straight from the stone led to a terrace covered with a wooden pergola, covered with ivy which climbed on its posts, and which had a cleared view on the cultures below and the valley, offering an idyllic landscape. In the same way as the pergola, the walls of the restaurant were covered with greenery which framed the main door. Perfumes came out through the door, which made the mages salivate, particularly Natsu. When they entered the building, they saw somebody behind a kind of counter opened onto the kitchen. It was a man with neck length brown hair wearing a chef outfit. Lyon pressed on a bell on the counter of the reception and it got the cook attention, the latter raising his head then turning around. Seeing the mages, he went out of the kitchen and went to them, allowing them to see that he had emerald green eyes behind glasses with rectangular frame as well as an hairstyle making some bangs fall in front of his eyes.

\- " Hello and welcome to ' Palazzo verde '. You have a reservation? " He asked, with a light Italian accent. " Although for such a beauty, I can find a table without any problem. " He continued, giving a charming look at Kagura while kissing her on the hand. " I am called Vincenzo Giaconni, owner and chef of this establishment. Pleased to meet you, _bella signorina_ " Kagura blushes, not being used to this kind of attention, although getting a strange feeling hearing his strange accent, whereas Lyon coughed to draw the attention of the cook.

\- " In fact, we are here to ask you questions about this strange event which you witnessed a few days ago. " Recovering immediately hearing the ice mage words, he got his glasses back in places with his thumb before answering.

\- " Ah I see. And well I would answer you gladly but provided that you ate here. It suits you? "

\- " Well, you're coming or what? " Natsu asked from the table he sat at, a menu between hands, taking all the others by surprise. the cook looked at him, eyebrows raised before turning to the 3 others.

\- " Is he always so lively? "

\- " We don't know him as well as that, but I think that an idea that he is lively only if we talk about food. " Supposed Sting, obtaining an "Aye" of confirmation from Happy.

The mages settled down at the table and looked at the menu, they were surprised seeing that there was nothing known on this menu. The cook returned later, a small pad in the hand.

\- " Sorry, but I do not know these dishes. " Said Kagura, drawing the attention of their host.

\- " They are dishes from my home country, don't worry, everything is excellent. So. What do you want ? "

\- " Fish. " said Happy.

\- "More precisely."

\- "Fish."

The cook looked at Happy for a moment in silence before turning his head to the others.

\- "Just give him a raw fish. It will be enough." Answered Natsu, before the cook sighed, turning to the other.

\- " … And otherwise? " Asked the owner of the place.

\- " I am going to take Gorgonzola gnocchis. " asked Kagura.

\- " I am going to take the same thing, and if possible one of your 'Italian Ice Cream' for dessert. " continued Lyon, whereas their host noted the orders.

\- " With no problem at all. And for these sirs? " Continued the cook, turning to both Dragons Slayer and the remaining Exceed.

\- " 5 fire version of those Margarita for me. " asked Natsu, receiving a look of incomprehension on behalf of the cook.

\- " What do you mean, fire version ? "

\- " Well you make your pizza and you set fire to it. " explained Natsu, as if it was something normal and totally logical.

\- " OoooK, I am going to do what I can. " He continued to look at Natsu with a frown before turning to Sting. " And for you? "

\- " 2 cheeses pizzas. And I would like a supplement of pineapple. " Sting found himself with butcher's knife, appeared out of nowhere, under the throat, held by the chef who had a mad look in the eyes. This unexpected reaction took the mages by surprise but before one of them can do anything, the cook spoke, addressing Sting with a deep aggressiveness in the voice.

\- " Come on, repeat that, I dare you. "

\- " I…I … Without pineapple, that will do. " corrected Sting, heavily sweating. When Sting changed his mind, he calmed down immediately as if nothing had ever happened.

\- " Well, since everybody ordered, I am going to prepare all this, I'll get back quickly. " And he took off, going back to the kitchen. The mages, still shocked by his sudden change of personality, which was as rough as it was brief, looked at each other before Lyon speaks, breaking the silence which had settled down.

\- " Well, and I thought that Toby had a short fuse. "

\- " Cooking seems to be a sensitive subject with this guy. " added Sting, putting an hand to his throat, remembering the presence of the knife.

\- " I, I find him more and more suspicious. " intervened Kagura, looking at the opening in the wall giving onto the kitchen, where she saw him trying to put fire to his pizzas. " The council already had its suspicions, but this restaurant is supposed, according to the inhabitants to be successful except there is nobody here. And then, taking care of the service, the orders and the cooking alone is impossible. He is really hiding something. "

After a few minutes, the mysterious cook returned in the room, pushing a trolley filled with the ordered dishes, who weren't able to refrain from salivating in spite of their suspicions. The smells emitted by the dishes made the mages mind travel. He arranged dishes in front of them before speaking.

\- " And sorry for my reaction from before. " He began, referring to his aggression during the orders. "It's just that there are things in cooking that I cannot forgive. To put of the pineapple on a pizza is one of them. "

\- " And otherwise, would you like to join us so we can talk about what you know about this strange event, mister Giaconni? " asked Kagura with a smile, trying to make him talk.

\- " Please, _mia bella_ , call me Vincenzo. Mister Giaconni, it is more for my father. "

\- " You got a strange name. " commented Natsu, already guzzling down his pizzas.

\- " I am not from here. I come from far away, I am not even of Fiore at first. So, " Vincenzo took a chair and sat at the table, next to Kagura, to whom he gave one charming smile. " You want me to talk to you about these things fallen from the sky, is that it ? "

\- " Yes indeed. We would like to know exactly about what it was. " Confirmed witch gravitational, slightly ill-at-ease because of the closeness of the cook, a hand going to Archenemy, ready to attack(affect) if he tried anything.

\- " When this explosion resounded in the sky, I saw those things falling from the sky. My curiosity got the best of me and I went to see what it was. " He began his story, in front of the mages, who were all ears, except Natsu who half-listened, too busy by his pizzas." When I got to the crash site, if I can call it like that, I did not find a meteor or other celestial body of the same kind, but human beings. "

\- " Human beings ? Like us ? Not just human looking ? " Sting asked this question by frowning, not understanding how an explosion in the sky could make people rain.

\- " Yes and no. They spotted me quickly, but they did not kill me, so I took advantage of it to asked them questions. The usual things, like, where they come from, who they are, this kind of question."

\- " And they answered you? "

\- " Yes, _signore_. They are twelve and appeared as a group named 'Strizers'. They said they are coming from another world and they came to test the mages of this world. "

\- " To test us, why's that ? And how ? " Asked Lyon, trying to see how, and especially why, these chaps would want to test them.

\- " _Non lo so_. But they will not hold back. They will come with all they have at their disposal. "

\- " From what country are you from exactly? " Suddenly asked Kagura, bringing out her most beautiful smile, taking her companions by surprise. But Vincenzo, in front Kagura's charm, answered almost immediately.

\- " Italy, _mia dolce bellezza_ , the most beautiful country in the world. "

\- " Except that I know enough of the geography of this world to know that this country does not exist. Not in this world, at least. "

Vincenzo paused for a moment, before limping on his chair, groaning with dejection.

\- " … _E Merda_ , she got me. As beautiful as she is cunning, this young woman. "

The reactions came quickly. The mages and Exceeds jumped out of their chairs, ready for the fight.

\- " Ah that bastard ! You work for them is that it? " Roared Sting, ready to fight, Lector transformed by his side. Vincenzo did not have time to answer that Natsu appeared in front of him, the fist on fire, before sending him a blow right in the face, sending him crushing through the wall of the kitchen.

\- " Tell us where they are! We gonna beat their asses ! " Ordered Natsu before Lyon intervenes.

\- " Moron. How can we get answers now, you have just knocked him out. "

\- " Not bad, but you can do better. "

They turned to the rubbles and saw Vincenzo, up and without a scratch, some kind of brown spot on his face, the same kind as those Kagura saw on the ground, in the place where Natsu had struck him.

\- " Is it… tree bark? ", noticed the mage, raising her head towards Vincenzo. " He protected himself with a mask of bark. "

\- " I was not totally honest with you on a point. I am not really a witness of the incident, but rather one of the culprits. " At that, he stretched out a finger towards the mages, whereas the ground around him cracked.

 _ **WHIP ROOT !**_

Thick roots sprang all at once from the cracks, rushing at the mages who, taken by surprise, were ejected of the restaurant, landing in the lawn in front of the terrace. When they got up, Vincenzo was on the terrace in front of the entrance, a mocking smile on his face. He also changed his clothes. He wore now a pair of brown jeans held by a green belt with green and white converse. He also wore a white shirt with long sleeve tucked up to his elbows, and a green sleeveless jacket over it. At his waist was attached a chain at the end of which hung a kind of praying mantis.

\- " If you manipulate wood, it's going to be quick! " Roars out Natsu, who ignited, hoping to intimidate Vincenzo. But that had not the expected effect.

 _ **FIRE DRAGON'S IRON FIST !**_

 _ **EBONY ARM !**_

While Natsu dashed to him, Vincenzo just raised his arm which covered in some kind of black wood in the shape of an arm of monstrous appearance. He welcomed the blow fired by Natsu in the palm of his now bigger hand, taking almost no damage. He closed his fist on the Dragon Slayer hand before throwing him towards his colleagues. The hand returned to normal and light up in green before sweeping the space in front of him with the same hand.

 _ **RAZOR GRASS !**_

The grass of the lawn on which they stood up bristled all at once, propagating like a wave through the lawn. The mages barely had time to jump out before the flowerbed of grass became filled with blade like grass, as sharp as razors and which would have impaled them if they had had the misfortune to remain on it.

\- " Each Strizer possesses powers access around a 'domain', for lack of better word. " Explained Vincenzo, advancing on the lawn, while the blades took back their forms of origin as he moved forward, different kind of plants growing on his path. " The oceans, the volcanoes, the sky, there is a lot of domain. As for me, I am Vincenzo Giaconni, Strizer of the forest. Plants, trees and all which is vegetal belongs to me " by pronouncing these words, he had found itself surrounded by plants of sort and size. " Good, enough about me. I think that it's time to pass in to the main course. "

 **Ok, second chapter done, the third one might take more time since I have a job and from Monday to Friday, I don't have much time to work on it, but at the very last, it should be updated by the end of the week.**

 **Hope you enjoyed the chapter. Don't forget to review to let me know of your advices and ideas.**

 **See you next time.**

 **Next time : Fireproof plants ! Trapped in the whispering forest ! A worrying disappearance !**


	3. Chapter 3 : The whispering forest

**Hi, guys ! Like I said last time, I'm here to translate the French chapter before switching between them. So here I am for the 3** **rd** **chapter.**

 **Now it's battle time ! I hope you won't find my OCs too OP, it's not the point for them to be. But since this is my first time using them so I hope you'll liked them.**

 **I wish you a good reading ! Enjoy !**

 **I don't own Fairy Tail !**

 _"Thoughts"_

 _ **Moves / Spell**_

 **Chapter 3 : The Whispering Forest**

/- Magnolia -/

The Head Quarter of Fairy Tail was strangely quiet, considering the number of mages. Since Sting, Lyon, Kagura and Natsu had left for Karista to lead the investigation at the request of the council, and more exactly of Warrod and Jura, the members of Mermaid Heel, Sabertooth and Lamia Scale had decided to stay in town until the others return, especially as there was a risk that this business can be more complicated that a simple investigation in a restaurant. But in spite of these uncertainties as for the future, everybody seemed to live their life as if there was no problem. Makarov sat as usual on the bar, together with the other guild masters. Lucy was also by the bar talking with Yukino and Mirajane, the Sabertooth mage being particularly worried.

\- " I hope that everything goes well for them. " Began the white haired celestial mage, frowning. " I admit that I am afraid. What if they came back wounded … or worse ? "

\- " You worry too much. " said Lucy, trying to reassure her friend. " They are more than able to take care of themselves. Also, they've seen worse than a restaurant owner as a threat. "

\- " I have to admit that I am surprised. I would have thought that you would be more worried than that for Natsu, Lucy " Mirajane had said that hoping to get a reaction out of Lucy, as a stammering or a blushing, any sign of embarrassment, but she got neither of them.

\- " I'll care about him when he'll care for the others. " Spat Lucy, taking the mages around her by surprise. Apparently, the incident of the festival (the fight AND the words which have hurt Happy) was hard to swallow for her.

\- "Don't you think you're exaggerating a little, no? " Levy began, trying to reason the stellar mage. " For the fight, I can understand, but he didn't wanted to hurt Happy . "

\- "If he paid more attention to the others, that would have not happened. "

\- " Please children, calm down. Let us wait for they return before solving those problems. " Makarof intervened to make sure the situation doesn't worsen, before keeping on with a smile. " Then again, to them 4, they accumulate a great quantities of power. I am sure that it will be a cakewalk for them."

/- Karista -/

 _ **NEEDLE SWEEP !**_

Except that the cakewalk was sweeping this great power with a fir tree. Literally, because the mages had to evade one more time a whole fir tree, needles bristled like an hedgehog, that Vincenzo began handling as a huge feather duster.

 _ **ICE MAKE: EAGLE!**_

Lyon created his eagles, which rushed at Vincenzo from everywhere around him. But it was not enough. Vincenzo raised hands to the sky, bamboo surging out of earth all at once.

 _ **BAMBOO JAVELIN !**_

The plants took off from the ground, destroying the eagles. Out of the corner of his eyes, the Strizer saw Sting who began rushing towards him, fists coat with magic. He then pulled down his hands, which still pointed to the sky, in the direction of the white dragon, the bamboo, still in the air, followed its movements and crashed on the poor dragon which was stopped clear in its sprint.

 _ **WOOD CANNON !**_

He joined his hands, an enormous cannon makes of wood forming over it and pointing it towards Kagura. He opened fire, the stream of green energy heading straight towards her, who evaded and used her magic to get suddenly closer to Vincenzo. She stabbed him with the point of her sword, always in its sheath, but Vincenzo had time to slightly avoid the blow thanks to an armor of bark but which broke on impact. Kagura tried to struck him again, but she was faced with something she couldn't have predict: Archenemy wasn't in her hands anymore. The time for her to understand what happened, she was knocked from behind by a root. Vince recovered from the blow carried by Kagura and changed his hand into a wooden pistol topped with leaves which began to shine.

 _ **PHOTOSYNTHESIS GUN !**_

He opened fire on Kagura at point-blank range, making rain a salvo of bright bullet on the mage, sending her back on several meters.

" Light ? He used the leaves to absorb the power of the sunlight? " Whereas Kagura had this reflection, Natsu appeared, transported by Happy, rushing straight ahead towards the Strizer at a blinding speed.

 _ **KARYU NO TEKKEN !**_

Natsu launched his attack, but it does not reach the good target. Instead of striking his opponent, he punched a cactus which had just grown in front of him. And besides suffering due to the needles impaling his hand, some water burst out of the cactus, putting out his flames.

\- " What? " Natsu did not have time to end his sentence that he was thrown behind by a thick swarm of razor leaves, joining his companions.

\- " I suppose that you did not know that cactus are filled with water, isn't it Natsu? And concerning your sword, Kagura, here it is. " Indicated Vincenzo, pointing to a vine next to him, holding Archenemy. But Kagura seemed more intrigued by another detail.

\- " Waits. How do you know our names? "

\- " I … No. WE know much more than simply your names, _signorina_ Mikazuchi. " Hearing that guy saying her surname took her by surprise, but not as much as what was going to follow.

\- " Kagura Mikazuchi. Lived alone with her older brother Simon in Rosemary's village. Survived, thanks to Erza Scarlett, to the 'raid' which leads his brother to the tower of paradise. You dedicated a big part of your life in finding your brother then later to kill Jellal Fernandez, the person who was responsible of his death. " While Kagura couldn't shook off the shock of him knowing so much of her life, Vincenzo turned to Lyon.

\- "Lyon Vastia. Learned ice magic with Ur along Gray Fullbuster. Blinded by your need to surpass your master, you went so far as to try to bring the devil Deliora back to life to, according to you, succeed where she failed. As for you two, Sting Eucliffe and Natsu Dragneel, you have the same kind of story. You are born orphans more than 400 years ago, trained by dragons and sent to the future via the door of Eclipse. And there is also the fact that Natsu is, oh sorry, WAS, one of Zeref's demon, E.N.D., the most powerful of them all. We know many things about you all. We came to test you after all. Although for my first time as a spy, I did not expect to be sucked in the middle of a free-for-all." He ended his sentence by replacing these glasses with his thumb, under the confused then shocked eyes of the mages.

\- "You spied on us yesterday, during the party. But why? What do you want in the end?" Required Kagura.

\- "Sorry, _mia bella_ , but you'll have to show us what you all got if you want to know the truth."

Suddenly, a white flash blinded him just for a second and when his eyes were once again working well, he got barely enough time to intercept Sting. They found themselves in a struggle of strength, trying to get the upper hand over the other. Vincenzo, equipped with wooden claws, slowly got the upper hand, little by little.

\- "Don't try, the dragon. You will win not at this small game."

\- "Who told you that I wanted to win?"

The time to understand what Sting wanted to say, Vincenzo was clawed on his back. Releasing the dragon, he turned around and saw Lector, who began clawing at him like a tiger. The Strizer, taken by surprise, couldn't do much except trying to evade the blows. So, Lyon, Sting and Natsu were able to counter-attack.

 _ **HAKURYU NO HOKO !**_

Sting unleashed his breath on his opponent, who was throw back, exactly where Lyon wanted him.

 _ **ICE MAKE: APE!**_

The enormous monkey made of ice struck him with its two fists, sandwiching him. When the fists finally moved away, it was to give open a way for Natsu, whose arms were covered with flames.

 _ **KARYU NO YOKUGEKI !**_

He caught Vincenzo, sending flying in the air and crash several meters away. After Lector gave her sword back to Kagura, the 2 dragons rushed at Vincenzo, assisted by their respective Exceeds, who released them above the Strizer, Lector joining Sting whereas Happy stood back.

 _ **RAMMING TRUNKS !**_

2 trunks appeared all of a sudden from the ground behind Vincenzo, the first one swept Natsu away but thanks to Lector, Sting evaded the second and they began exchanging blows with plants manipulator, who got great difficulty in defending himself, not being an expert in close combat without a weapon, under the eyes of the other mages, amazed by their teamwork.

\- " Wow ! So cool ! I want to do it too ! " Natsu observed the fight with stars in his eyes, not noticing that his words hurt Happy, unlike Vincenzo who noticed it in the corner of his eye. Back to Sting, the white dragon took advantage of a moment of calm offered by Lector, who held back Vincenzo as much as possible, to prepare an attack.

 _ **HOLY RAY !**_

Vincenzo got rid of Lector, but just a little too late. He received Sting's attack dead on and was throw back a good 20 meters away, but he recovered rather fast, a knee on the ground while he got his breath back. When he finally got up, he had an almost satisfied smile on his face.

\- "Well played. Really well played." He said under his breath, wiping some blood off his mouth.

\- "It seems like hand-to-hand fight is not your cup of tea, cook." Caused Lector, drawing the attention of the Strizer which did not deny.

\- "You could say that I'm not a specialist at this. I admit it."

\- "There is something that I don't understand." Lyon said. "If we are your target, why you did not poison our meal?"

Vincenzo's face twisted itself in an expression of disgust, as if Lyon had just said an atrocity.

\- "2 reasons. The first one, it is that we have to test you and it is not by poisoning you that we can do it.", Vincenzo began, before starting again, his expression a lot more bitter. "The second, it's that in my family, food is as holy as God himself. My life and my family always revolved around the kitchen, there is at least half of my family who have restaurants. So, even if it is the simplest way to kill somebody, I would never poison his food. Then again, I am one of the only ones of my group who refused to resort to depraved methods, but there are some who likes them a lot."

\- "Well, at least, we can agreed on the fact that he has principles." Commented Sting.

\- "Go, I am burning up now, come on!" Natsu was ready to fight, but he'll quickly be disappointed.

\- "Oh, if I was you, I won't be showing off. It is time to change the scenery."

\- "What ? What does he mean when he say 'change the scenery' ?" Asked Happy, his answer coming via Kagura.

\- "I don't really know but I got a feeling that we are not going to like it."

\- "It is time for me to play at home. LET'S GO !"

Vincenzo's body began emitting a monstrous quantity of energy, and although he did not possess magic strictly speaking, the 4 mages still had a backlash in front of so much power. This energy began propagating and forming an gigantic circle around the group.

 _ **VEGETAL WORLD : WHIPERING FOREST !**_

Suddenly, the ground cracked under the mages and a forest appeared, surrounding them. They quickly noticed that this forest was rather special. It was so dark that they couldn't see three meters away and so dense that it was difficult to move freely. They were literally surrounded with vegetation and considering Vincenzo's powers, it was a very bad sign. And to the icing on the cake, they were all separated from each other.

\- " SO THIS IS YOUR PLAN? HIDING LIKE A COWARD?! "

\- " Please Natsu, calm down. " Whispered Vincenzo to provoke the dragon.

 _ **KARYU NO HOKO!**_

When he heard this voice, Natsu spat a torrent of flame in the same direction, but the answer which he obtained was not the one he expected.

\- " HEY! Natsu, what the hell are you doing?! " It was Sting, who just had time to crouch to avoid ending in grill.

\- " Hehehe. Welcome in the _**Whispering Forest**_. " Answered Vincenzo, always hidden but whose voice seemed to reverberate all around them. " I can tell you that your chances of survival have just reached zero. And it is not necessary to try to run away this forest is in fact in a different space, a bubble which will grow according to your action to make sure you stay inside. Basically, it has no limit. "

\- " Simply put, we are prisoner of this place " summarized Kagura, observing her surroundings.

\- " Exactly. And now, I am going to have a little fun. " They could not see him, but Vincenzo got a dark grin when he said those words.

All of a sudden, the vegetation began moving attack the poor mages from all side. Explosive seeds, whip vines, razor leaves, wood hammer and everything you could think of. A deluge which the mages had no chance to avoid. Meanwhile, Vincenzo stood, arms crossed, looking with a smile at the spatial sphere where the mages were locked, satisfied with the way things were going.

\- " Well, I just have to wait for them to die, I guess. " He saw a small movement on his left and turning his head, he saw Happy, who looked the sphere without knowing what he could do. The smile on Vincenzo's face stretched even more and spoke to the cat. " Ah, I missed someone ? "

Happy froze, realizing that this guy saw him. Knowing he had to do something, he did the only thing he could do. He spread his wings and flew away as fast as his wings could take him. If he was fast enough, he could reach the guild and bring back some reinforcements. But regrettably, the vegetal man had some other plans.

 _ **RUBBER WHIP !**_

A white, gooey and slightly sticky substance oozed from his hand and he threw it towards Happy, catching the flying Exceed, sending him back to the ground.

\- " Where do you think you are going, like that? I don't need reinforcement to came now. So you stay here with me. "

Happy was however surprised seeing that the rubber whip which held him prisoner was gone and that Vincenzo was not watching him.

\- " Why are you not locking me up with the others? You won't even tie me up? " Asked Happy, who was afraid, thinking about what this chap wanted to do. The 5 others were trapped and he could not call anyone to help. He had to find a solution.

\- " Why I shall bother to do that? After all, it is not as if you were a threat. This sensation of powerlessness which you feel, not being able to help his friends in any way, is it not what you feel all the time during your jobs? " Vincenzo's word reached Happy's heart and the worst, it's that he could not deny the facts. " I have to say what should be said. As things are today, except eating fish and sometime being used as a mean of transport for Natsu, you have no real role. It's probably not easy to live with that, especially when you add at this the fact that the other Exceeds are all able to team up with their partner. Don't try to deny it, I know that the reactions of Natsu towards Lector and Frosch hurt you. "

Happy looked down, quivering, with tears in the eyes, not being able to deny that he was right. He felt less and less useful, more and more on the sideline, and he began to be fed up with it. Seeing that his words had had the intended effect, Vincenzo turned to the spatial sphere, feeling less and less movements inside.

 _" It would seem that they won't hold much longer, now. I wonder who should be my next targets ? "_

But he hardly had time to think about that when he felt like something was happening in the sphere. Frowning, he raised his head to look at the sphere and see that the top was taking a lighter shade. This spot began to expand, becoming even more clear. Not understanding what was happening, he took a look inside. While Kagura, Sting, Lyon and Lector were all knocked out, covered with wounds, deep gashes and other, head on the ground, Natsu, who was not in better shape, was standing up, covered with flames which were gaining in intensity with every seconds. They had reached such a heat that the surrounding plants was reduced to ashes as soon as they were too close. Going out of the sphere, Vincenzo noticed that the sphere was still swelling, cracks covering its surface.

 _"No, don't tell me he is …"_ he opened wide eyes, as he realizing what was happening. _"He releases so much energy that the spatial bubble cannot extend fast to contain everything. He is going to …"_

He didn't have time to finish his sentence when the sphere exploded, the shockwave so intense that it could be felt all the way to Karista. When the explosion settled down, Vincenzo reopened his eyes, seeing Natsu, just standing a few feet away from him.

\- "Not bad, dragon." Vincenzo was clearly annoyed. "But if you want some fireworks, I can give you something good." He joined both hands, arms tightened in front of him.

 _ **VEGETAL WEAPONRY : TROPICAL RAILGUN !**_

An enormous, long and tubular wooden cannon covered with stripes from where emanated a bright green light formed on his hands, and he pointed the weapon at Natsu. In a low humming, particles of green energy accumulated in the cannon, filling him almost to the brim.

\- " _Arrivederci_ , Natsu Dragneel!"

 _ **SLASHING FORM !**_

Without having time to realized what happened, Vincenzo's cannon was cut in several pieces before exploding and a profound gash on his left side. Turning his head, he saw Kagura, Archenemy in hand, collapsing on the ground after this last offensive.

\- " ENOUGH IS ENOUGH ! You are all really starting to get on my nerve! "

 _ **THORNS SWARM !**_

Putting his hands on the ground, Vincenzo called a thick cloud of brambles which rushed at Kagura and Natsu, but regrettably for him, a new unforeseen event stood up against him.

 _ **ICE MAKE: FROST WAVE !**_

A wave of frost propagated at full speed and froze the brambles immediately. Vincenzo turned his head again, his time seeing Lyon, laying on the ground, panting, his hands joined. He also saw Natsu rush towards him, Sting just next to him.

\- " I don't think so. " Vincenzo, eyes aimed at the two guys, put a hand on the ground but noticed with horror that Lyon had not only frozen his brambles, but also the ground, rending him unable to use his powers. And to insult to the injury, he suddenly felt a sharp pain in one of his feet. Looking down, he saw Lector, his claws planted in one of his feet, nailing him on the spot. The reality then hit him like a train launched at full speed. He was cooked.

\- " IT IS FAR FROM BEING FINISHED, MAGES ! THIS IS JUST THE BEGINNING ! YOU STILL HAVE MY 11 PARTNERS TO BEAT AND CAN GUARANTE THAT YOU HAVE SEEN NOTHING YET ! "

The Natsu and Sting's magic combined, creating a white and red sphere in the palm of their hands and while they were not more than a few meters away, Lector let go of the Strizer, getting out of the way.

 _ **WHITE FLAME'S DRAGON HOLY FLARE!**_

Their magics merged more and they struck the Strizer at the same time, unleashing their powers in a wave of energy which took Vincenzo up to his restaurant. When he came in contact with the walls of the building, all the power of the attack exploded, destroying the restaurant and the shock propagated all the way Karista, where the inhabitants panicked because of it, and even further away. When the smoke cleared out, the restaurant was nothing more than a heap of ruins, Vincenzo spread eagle in the middle of it, half burned, unconscious. The 4 mages, relieved, collapsed, succumbing to their wounds. Lector, in better shape than the others, got up, observing the damages of the fight and the mages before calling the other Exceed, which had stayed on edges, as if he was in his own world.

\- " Hey Happy. " The blue cat raised the head towards Lector, as if he realized just now that it was finished. " We have to bring them to the others and I can't carry all of them alone. Takes Natsu, I take care of others. " On these words, he took Kagura under an arm, Sting in the other one and lifted Lyon with his tail. Observing his Exceed friend, Vincenzo's words returned to assault Happy's, making him feel sick again.

\- "Let's go". With this, they took off, heading toward Fairy Tail. Shortly after their departure, a silhouette appeared next to Vincenzo's body, looking at him and shaking his head.

\- " You can do better, Vince. You can do better. Well, it's still good. We collected quite a lot of data. Hopefully the next one will get better results. " With this, he disappeared with Vincenzo, as if they were snatched by the shadows.

/- Fairy Tail -/

If there is one thing which the mages gathered at Fairy Tail did not expect, it was seeing their 4 friends returning to the guild unconscious, carried by 2 Exceeds, who weren't at their best either. After the mages received first aid, the other mages bombarded them with questions, but soon, Happy began to go away.

\- " Where are you going, Happy? " Asked Natsu, intrigued by the unusual behavior of his feline partner.

\- "Uh, I'm going home. I'm really tired. " Answered the Exceed, earning suspicious looks from his friends, not used to this kind of behavior on behalf of Happy.

\- " Ah OK. See you tonight then. " With this, Happy got out of the guild and the others returned to their interrogation, during which the mages gone to Karista explained everything that happened there. They all listened, frowning at what they were hearing, even if some of them stopped at some details, like the iron dragon.

\- " So in short, " began Gajeel. " You were attacked by a cook who mop the floor with you and you learnt nothing else? Ah, pathetic! " He began laughing, before stopping, after receiving an elbow in the ribs from Levy.

\- " I wouldn't say that. " She started again, glaring at Gajeel before turning back at the others. " We know that they are from another world and that they are here to test us. "

\- " We also know that they are tough. This guy was alone and hold his own against Natsu, Lyon, Sting and Kagura. " added Gray when he heard someone cough. Seeing Lector, he corrected himself. " And Happy and Lector also. If the 11 others are as strong as he is, it won't be easy. "

\- " Especially that the others might resort to more obscure methods to fight. " add Erza, arms crossed on her armor. " If we add that to the fact that we know nothing of who they are and the nature of their powers, we will have to constantly on our guard to avoid being too vulnerable. "

\- "There is no need to overthink it. We'll think about it tomorrow, after a good night sleep." Announced Makarof, getting the attention of everybody. At those words, the mages part, each going to bed, hoping that the future is not as complicated as what the recent events suggested.

/- The next day -/

Even though it was just 9 in the morning, the guild hall was already packed with a lot of people. Some of them had a particularly bad night, with barely any sleep at all, the discussions of the day before had maintained them awake, for some all night long. The discussions were almost all centered around the Strizers and how to beat them when suddenly, Natsu broke up the doors of the guild and without bothering to even say hello to anyone, he began running in all the building, as if he was looking for something.

\- "Come on, where are you?! If it's a joke, it's not funny!"

Or rather somebody and it was when everybody realized that Natsu was alone: Happy was not with him.

\- "Natsu, what's going on?" Lucy had asked the question, even if she had a good idea of the answer and she suspected that she was not going to like it.

\- "HAPPY DISAPPEARED!"

 **OK, little cliffhanger, in a way.**

 **I hope you liked that chapter and that this fight was good enough for you, since it was the first time I'm using one of my OCs in a fic, moreover in a fight. Please leave a review if you liked it or if you have some advices.**

 **See you next time !**

 **Next time : Looking for a cat. Tigers assaulted by a lion. The light of a bad omen !**


	4. Chapter 4 : missing, assault, relaxation

**Hello, guys ! Ready for the last translation before the original chapter. Like I said, after this, I'll write a French chapter then a translation. I hope you'll like that chapter. Review if you like or if you have an advice.**

 **Let's go**

 **P.S. : I don't own Fairy Tail, just my OCs.**

 **Chapter 4 : Search, Assault and Relaxation**

/- Magnolia -/

\- "HAPPY! WHERE ARE YOU ?"

Even if the day had just began, the peace of Magnolia was already disturbed by the mages, but the inhabitants could feel that this time, the reasons weren't the same as usual. Members of all the guilds ran through all the city, searching for Natsu's Exceed. When the latter rushed into the guild crying out that he had disappeared, the reactions came almost immediately and quickly, several groups left the building, looking for him. Hopefully, he was still in town or at least nearby. Frosch, Panther and Carla looked for him from the sky but in spite of their efforts, the blue cat was still nowhere to be found. At the guild, the atmosphere was heavy and Natsu clearly had something to do with it.

\- "It's one of those Strizers scheme, it has to ! They kidnapped him !"

\- "Calm down Nastu, we aren't even sure he left the city. We mustn't jump to conclusion.", Lucy tried to moderate Natsu, but Happy's disappearance was also worrying her, and as if it wasn't already complicated, Warren had no good news.

\- "Nobody found anything yet. And though I tried my best, I can't reach Happy. So either he is too far, or something prevents me from getting in touch with him, or he is unable to answer."

\- "Natsu, when you were at your home this morning, did you saw something that could help us? An indication, a message or something else?" Asked Makarov. Natsu frowned, trying to remember before sighing.

\- "No, absolutely nothing. When I got up this morning, Happy had disappeared and all his things with him."

\- "Ah. So we have no more… ." Cana stopped mid-sentence, realizing something. "Wait. His things also disappeared?"

\- "Uh, yeah."

\- "And you couldn't say it earlier!" The shout of the card mage surprised Natsu, who had a backlash.

\- " Why ? It's not that important. Yes ? "

\- " Of course it is important, ash breath. " Intervened Gray. " I don't see why a kidnapper would take his victim's stuff with him, that's even more weird considering that Happy's a cat. Which would mean that Happy left by himself. "

\- " What are you saying, ice-prick? " Retorted Natsu. " Why Happy would leave alone all of a sudden without even telling anyone? "

\- " I remind you that after the Tartaros incident, you left without warning anybody apart Bunny Girl. " Intervene Gajeel. " Well, if the 10 word note you left can be considered as a decent message, which wasn't the case. Then you aren't in position to lecture anyone on this matter. " Natsu could only admit that Gajeel was right.

\- " Well OK, you got a point, I am not the best placed to make this kind of remark, but still. Why would he leave without telling me ? That's not like him. "

\- " I have to say that this Strizers might have something to do with it. " Pointed out Lector, showing itself for the first time this morning. " When we beat the first Strizer at Karista, Happy looked strange when we were leaving, and he still was yesterday evening when we returned. "

\- " AH. You see? I knew that these guys are behind his disappearance. " Exclaimed Natsu, satisfied to see that somebody shared his point of view.

\- " Personally, I think that you have your share of responsibility in this. "

Lucy had spoken and her words caused the present mages, and Natsu in particular, to look at her with big shocked eyes. Natsu's shock was quickly replaced by an annoyed expression.

\- "At since when it is my fault ?"

\- "The problem with you, Natsu, is that you say and do things without paying attention to what the others can feel. For example, when you are in total swoon in front of Frosch and Lector new forms."

\- "What? But I've said nothing bad." Natsu got indignant, not understanding what Lucy's point was.

\- "Even if it's not your intention, you hurt people because you're not paying attention to what you say far too often." Lucy now stood in front of Natsu, each of her words coming along with one step forwards, making the dragon go back until he found himself against the wall. "Happy is the only Exceed who just know how to fly and nothing else while the others can transform and fight with their respective partners. And to see you wanting the same thing hurts him because it's not something he can't do for you." Judging by Natsu's reaction, the stellar mages words had reached him. But Lucy decided to speak her mind a little more. "According to me, Happy ran away because of that. And I don't know if it's to return one day." On these words, she went away from Salamander, returning to the bar, letting the latter slide along the wall, brought down by what he had just heard.

\- "If he ran away, then he probably left the city." Said Makarov, turning to the mind mage of the guild. "Warren, call back the others."

\- "OK, I'm on it."

/- In the streets of Magnolia, with Rufus and Orga -/

\- "Apparently, there's no need to look for Salamander's Exceed anymore. Let's return to Fairy Tail."

Orga and Rufus, the 2 Sabertooth mages, were, like the other, were searching for Happy thinking that a Strizer was behind its disappearance, but they had just learnt by Warren that Happy had ran away.

\- "A runaway, right? It's true that I remember that he was strange yesterday evening." Granted Rufus, while he and Orga turned back to return to the guild.

\- "Yeah. You believe that this plants dude was able to do him something?" Wondered Orga, entering an alley with his partner.

\- " It is a possibility. "

While they continued to walk, they perceived a silhouette, up in the middle of the path in front of them. It did not move and his long hooded coat totally hide his face.

\- "Who are you ? " Orga asked the question, surprised with the sudden appearance of this strange character. The latter heaved a sigh before speaking.

\- " Aah. I do not like this kind of situation, but it turns out that I have no choice, if I want to draw your attention. " The unknown guy had sighed by lowering his head, ignoring Orga's question, before recovering, revealing eyes which shone as lighthouses in the night. " My apologies, but the fate had decided to put you on my path, so I'll have to use the two of you. "

\- " I have no memory to have already met somebody having so much underestimated me. " Noticed Rufus, slightly frowning. " But I am going to engrave your defeat in my memory. "

\- "Yeah. I'm not the kind of guy to be afraid of some cloaked freak."

\- "Alas, I'm afraid that it won't be like you hope it will be. Also, there is no such thing as a tiger who's not afraid of a lion. "

The two tigers were about to rush at him when they were stopped as they saw some kind of lion appearing behind him. The sheer sight of it petrified the two guys, as if they were looking at a wild beast directly in the eyes. The stranger opened his arms, then closed them again, joining his hands like in a prayer, a light appearing between the 2.

 _ **SOLAR FLASH !**_

A blinding light shone between the hands, forcing Rufus and Orga to close their eyes and their opponent took advantage of the situation.

 _ **UV STREAM !**_

/- At the same time, in the sky -/

Frosch, Carla and Panther were flying over the city, trying to find Happy from the air when they received Warren's message. On the way back, they tried to understand the reasons why Happy could have left.

\- " It is certainly one of these Strizers scheme. " began Panther, on their way to return to the guild. " I don't know what the one they saw did, but he might have manipulated him to make us fall in a trap."

\- " Fro thinks so too ! "

\- " But at the same time, that doesn't explains why he would leave with his stuff. What are you thinking about that, Carla? "

But the answer didn't came immediately. Looking at Wendy's partner, the 2 male saw her lost inher thoughts, eyes locked on the horizon. Panther saw that as an opportunity there to tease a little his female friend.

\- " You miss him already? " The remark of the black Exceed brought Carla out of her staring so brutally that she almost lost control of her wings.

\- " Wh-what are talking about? That's not that at all ! " She denied vigorously, but she was not able to get rid of the red blush appearing on her face. " It's just that … " Her sentence remained unfinished, interrupted by a bright light coming from an alley not far from the guild. Intrigued, the 3 Exceeds exchanged a look before going to the alley. When they reached their destinations, they were paralyzed by the show in front of them.

Rufus and Orga were laying on the ground, unconscious and if simply seeing two of the most powerful mages of Sabertooth knocked out was already hard to believe, their current state was beyond the conceivable. Their skins were of a darker red than the Erza's hair and there was blisters of many sizes on some places, steam coming out of their bodies, like boiled crayfish.

\- " RUFUS! ORGA! " Frosch's shout brought the cats out of their torpor and threw themselves on both mages, and when they put their paws on them, they noticed that their bodies were hotter than the sand in a desert.

\- " What could have put them in this state ? " Wondered Carla, who was still in shock.

\- " I don't know, but it's not our priority. We should better return them to the guild, and fast. " Agreeing to Panther's order, Carla and Frosch joined him, transporting the 2 half cooked bodies to the guild.

/-Magnolia, Fairy Tail's sickbay-/

It was undoubtedly a lot for a single morning. Firstly, Happy goes missing, which was already enough to undermine the mages, and now, Rufus and Orga, cooked like meat at a barbecue, returned to the guild carried by 3 Exceeds. Wendy was looking after both mages, doing everything she could, with Minerva, Rogue, Yukino and Sting, the latter still convalescent, the 4 tigers waiting for Wendy to finish. As the pressure began to be unbearable, a groan was heard. Orga regained consciousness.

\- " Orga! How are you, man ? What happened out there ? " Asked Rogue, who was now at the bedside of the god slayer.

\- " Rogue, calm you. And you Orga, slowly, you are far from having fully recovered. " reminded Wendy.

\- " Fuck, I am burning hot. What happened to me exactly? "

\- " You are covered with second and third degree burns, and it is the same for Rufus. " Indicated the healer, before continuing. " You also suffer from dehydration. In fact, it's as if you had remained right under the sun unprotected during several hours, maybe several days. "

\- " But everything happened in an instant. " mumbled Orga, drawing the attention of Minerva and the others.

\- " Orga, what happened in this alley? " Asked the female ebony haired mage.

\- " Well, with Rufus, we crossed the path a weird dude in the alley. He kept saying things like he didn't like the situation but have no choice. Then we saw golden eyes, also some kind of lion appearing behind him and he created some kind of flash which blinded us and shortly after, I began to be feel really hot, I felt my skin burning. I rushed at this guy, trying to beat his ass, but I could only manage to tore away a piece of his jacket, but he sent me back on the ground and I fainted. "

\- " Thus, you have no idea of who assaulted you? " asked Yukino before Orga continues.

\- " He also mentioned that he had to draw our attention, thus that reduces the field of research. "

\- " Another Strizer. " The deduction of Sting suddenly made the pressure go up again, although everybody doubted that it could be something else.

\- " I don't what he looks like, but when I saw that what I rip was one of his pocket, I quickly put it in mine before losing consciousness, in case he would have seen and destroyed it. " He searched in his pocket and took out a card. Yukino grabbed it and read in a loud voice what was written on it.

-Relaxation Center Kin no Minamoto-

-Yoga, meditation, hot springs and well-being-

\- Client ID : 001502576 -

\- "A business card for a relaxation center ? Those Strizers have strange hobbies." Commented Sting, sitting down on one of the beds.

\- "In any case, no risks as for the origins of this station. Its been existing for years. It's in Akaruidesu, a city renowned for its hot spring." Indicated Yukino, trying to sound reassuring. At least, it means that this new enemy will not play in a place he created himself.

\- "Maybe but that looks like a trap." Noticed Rogue, frowning, wondering what to do. "They attack two of our members and Orga managed to get an indication about where we can find him. I'm sure he is waiting for us to come."

\- "Without a doubt, but we can't let this guy unpunished after he attacked 2 of our companions" Sting began to get up, now as Sabertooth's master. "Rogue, Minerva, Yukino, get ready. We are going there." While he began to go to the door, he was held by Yukino, who pulled him back inside and stood in front of him, hands on her hips, as if she was a mom scolding her son.

\- "Sorry, master. But you are still hurt. So stay there and rest, we are going to take care to it. Trust us."

\- "… OK, I trust you." Answered Sting, putting one of his hands on Yukino's head. "And stop calling me Master, it makes me feel like I'm as old as Makarof. I'd like you to call to me Sting, like the others." His sudden closeness made the white haired beauty reddened and Sting, realizing the situation, blushes too, taking a step back. "Yes, well uh. Get going, and good luck."

\- "Y-Yes. Let's go, everyone." With this, she left the sickbay, followed by Rogue and Kagura, who were smirking at what just happened. Once outside, they explained to the other mages that they planned to go to Akaruidesu to find this new Strizer. In the crowd, somebody ask to come with them and much to everyone surprise, it was Lucy.

\- "You know Lucy, they may go to a relaxation center, but it's going to be far from relaxing." Cana wanted to tease Lucy, but the blonde's answer was not the one that she hoped.

\- "I know that well, but between Happy's missing and everything else, I need to get everything out of my mind and it's not by staying here that It's going to happened." By speaking about this 'else', she had looked to Natsu, always lethargic because of Lucy's word towards him. "Well, let us not waste time, let's go." While they got ready to go through the door, they were interrupted by Natsu, taken out of his lethargy when he saw Lucy and the members of Sabertooth reached the door.

\- "Hey, wait, I'm coming with you."

\- "Uh, sorry but you are not healed Natsu, you can't come with us." reminded Rogue, pointing the bandages who still surrounded his torso and his arms. But Natsu played deaf.

\- "It's nothing. I have to come with you, you don't know what those guys are capable of."

\- "What is it? You don't trust us ? Moreover, since those guy's have different kind of power, you don't know more than us on what we are going to face." By saying this, Lucy had turned to the dragon slayer, her eyes piercing Natsu.

\- "It's not an issue about trusting you or not . These guys are powerful. You need help." Natsu insisted, without realizing that more and more people looked at him with dark eyes, while what he was saying became less and less credible.

\- "So, you are implying that our group is lacking power to the point we need a guy who still has hard time standing up ?"

\- "Luce, you aren't making any sense. I just say that …" *SLAP*

Natsu's sentence died in his throat, interrupted by a slap so strong as his head did a 90 degrees so abruptly that it was a miracle his cervical were still in one piece. putting his hand on his cheek where Lucy's hand had left a mark as red as Erza's hair, he turned his head towards Lucy, meeting with a look filled with anger, but also with disappointment.

\- "Shut up right now, Natsu, you are sinking yourself. Next time, takes time to think about what you say before speaking. Let's go." With this, she turned her heels, getting out the door with the others, leaving behind her a still shocked Natsu, for the second time this day.

\- "But … but I …" stuttered Natsu, not managing to understand why Lucy could be so angry at him. He turned to the others and Makarof addressed him.

\- "Sorry, son. But on this, you'll have to understands what you did wrong alone." And on these words, they all returned to their activities, leaving Natsu behind, more lonely than ever.

/- Akaruidesu -/

Since the city of Akaruidesu was at the other side of the country, the train ride lasted all day long and even at night, obliging our 4 mages to sleep in the train. Lucy and Yukino had fallen asleep on their own side and were the first ones to get up and made a funny discovery when they woke up. In front of them, Kagura had fallen asleep with Frosch on her knees, her head on Rogue's shoulders, the latter head the brunette, one of his hands on her waist, keeping her close to him. Yukino blushed slightly in front of this scene, smiling nevertheless. Lucy's face was cut in half with a derisive smile and she cleared her throat, waking both mages, who took some time to realize their position. The surprise made them part quickly, trying to get off the other, but it was already too late.

\- " Well, well. You seemed so peaceful, why this reaction? You would have liked being alone I imagine, isn't it ? " Teased Lucy.

\- " It is not what you think ! " Exclaimed Minerva, her face red from embarrassment.

\- " Yeah, we were just sleeping. It is not as if we had chosen to end in this position. " add Rogue, as red as his partner.

\- " But yes, of course. "

Before Lucy could add to them embarrassment, she was interrupted by Frosch, who took care of it for her.

\- " But Rogue, I saw you awoke that night and you didn't tried to go away from Minerva. In fact, you even put your arm around her waist. Is it because you are feeling less sick when she is there ? That's it ? "

\- " That … That's not … " This series of revelations made short-circuited Rogue's brain, who did not seem to be able to form a coherent sentence. The tint of red on Minerva's face kept reddening by the minute whereas Lucy and Yukino had a hard time trying not to laugh. Fortunately for our poor victims, the train finally reached its destination, indicating the end of the nightmare for our two poor mages.

Akaruidesu was a very classic city, if it was not for the thermal baths and hot springs, which made the city's success. Walking through the city, the mages saw the silhouette of the center in the distance and they were surprised by its architecture. It was some kind of pagoda made of wood and stone. It was painted in white and these golden decorations glistened in the sun, to the point that it could easily dazzle you. They entered the building, heading to the marble counter which served as reception. The desk clerk, a red haired young woman, welcome them with a beaming smile.

\- " Hello. Welcome to Kin no Minamoto. How can I help you? "

\- " Hello, we are looking of somebody who should be one of your customers. " Explained Kagura, handing out the business card. " Is there a way to know who he is ? "

\- " Regrettably, I am afraid that this information is confidential. ", answered the young woman, looking at the identification number on the card before recovering by smiling to the mages. " But, he comes every day to meditate, so if you want to see him, the best way would be to wait for him here. Why won't you use this time to use our services ? "

The 4 mages looked at each other, as if they were trying to know what to do.

\- " Sorry, but we have " " OK, we are going to do that. " Rogue froze on spot, his sentence killed without remorse by the girls, the 3 mages accepting the proposition at the same time. While the 3 girls, arm in arm, walked to the changing rooms to change, Rogue remained nailed on the spot.

\- Suddenly, I feel like I'm not existing. "

\- " Fro think so too ! "

Sighing, Rogue let his arms limp by his side and went to the changing room, hoping that this business will end soon.

/-Later-/

\- " Inspire and hold the position. "

Minerva, Lucy and Yukino did as told, following the orders of the instructor. They had quite a peaceful smile on their faces, this yoga's session making them forgot their problem for at least a moment. They were now in a position which required quite a lot of flexibility: on their knees, they had bent their bodies backward, to the point that their heads touched their feet (A.N. : king pigeon pose for those variation for those who ask). Being naturally quite flexible, they had no problem to keep the position, but what they had a hard time keeping, was their laughter. Indeed, somebody in the same room offered them the most hilarious of the show.

\- " Who is the degenerate guy who create those stupid position ? "

Rogue, which had been forced to follow the girls, was undergoing a real torture. He was much less flexible than his friends and it was clearly showing. And you also could hear it, because even if he was trying to remain quiet, it was far from being the case. And in addition to that, the fact that he was the only one having a hard time frustrated him excessively.

\- " Those positions are not human, it's the only explanation. "

\- " Fro think so too ! " Answered the small cat, who tried to take the same position, without more success than his friend. Rogue turned its attention to his partners, stopping on Minerva.

 _" At least, the sight is not unpleasant … Wait what!? "_

Rogue shook his head brutally as to clear his head, also trying to get rid of the red appearing on his cheeks. Even if he had to admit that the yoga outfit Minerva wore emphasized her curves and left no room to imagination. Closing his eyes, he refocused, trying again to reach this position which was breaking him bones.

/-Later, with Rogue and Frosch-/

\- " Aaaaaahhh. This is relaxing. Incomparable to this lousy yoga. "

When Rogue had entered the hot spring, he felt his muscles relaxing all at once and sighed. These positions gave him the impression of being tortured. He could hear the girls discussing and laughing on the other side of the fence which separated the men from the women. He could see that several perverts tried to find a hole in the barrier to try to peep on the girls and even those who did not looked like they were trying to visualize what was happening on the other side. Rogue couldn't help but feel fury boiling in him in the idea that these guys were lusting on Minerva, even if he would not admit it. It was then that he noticed that among these people, there is one who seemed to didn't mind what was happening.

A young man was sitting cross-legged on the edge of the pond, eyes closed and seemed in full meditation. His long brown hair falling on his shoulders, he seemed unaware of the outside world, but the noise, although weak, seemed to hamper his concentration.

\- " I can understand that the temptation is big, but please refrain your enthusiasm, if I way. " He asked in a deep voice. This intervention made one of the perverts react.

\- " What? Man, don't tell me you don't what to peek at those beauties on the other side ? "

\- " Everybody is looking for his own El Dorado, this voyeurism is not mine. "

Rogue was amazed by the attitude of this man, until his eyes locked with his. He had golden eyes. All at once, the Orga and the desk clerk's words returned to his mind.

 _\- " … Then we saw golden eyes … he comes every day to meditate … "_

Realizing who he had in front of him, Rogue felt the pressure rising all of a sudden and he saw the eyes of this man shone, as if he had smelt that Rogue had understood. Rogue leaped up, his body taking covering in shadows, getting ready to attack. The sudden change of behavior in Rogue frightened the other customers and Lucy, Minerva and Yukino, feeling Rogue's magic power rising, raised themselves at the top of the fence and got on the other side, joining Rogue. The stranger however didn't move at all.

\- Don't. Or someone will die. "

His seriousness, his voice and the look in his eyes were so powerful that Rogue remained on-the-spot.

\- " And who would that be ? "

Rogue's question aimed to be taunting, but he was far from confident.

\- "…"

The silence lasted, Rogue supporting the look of this man, while waiting for the answer which arrived after 2 long minutes.

\- "Me".

The sudden answer made Rogue collapse in the pond, the girls falling too. They clearly weren't expecting this kind of anti-climactic moment. When they got up, their opponent stood up, heading to the door.

\- "We shall fight later. It is not the moment for that. Meet me in the abandoned temple outside of the city, tomorrow morning, at 10 in the morning."

As soon as he left, Minerva took a step, ready to follow him, but was stopped by Rogue who stretched his arm to stop her.

\- "No, it would do no good to go after him now. We are going to get ready for tomorrow."

Although Lucy and Yukino agreed, they seemed focused on something really funny judging by their smile. Rogue followed their look and saw that when he tried to stop Minerva, he had put his hand on her breast, groping her. Seeing that, he moved back suddenly, as red as a lobster.

\- "AAAAAAAHHH! I AM SO SORRY! I DIDN'T WANTED …!"

But by moving back, his towel slid and his 'tools' found itself displayed to the girls, which showed their embarrassment like everybody would have expected it.

\- "KYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!"

Nobody knew what happened in these hot sources afterward, but when the 4 mages went to sleep at their hotel, humiliation and embarrassment was engraved on their faces.

 **OK. That's it. We're good. Now, I'm gonna write the 5** **th** **chapter in French, then I'll translate it in English afterward. I'm also gathering ideas for another fic, a One Piece one, so maybe the updates won't come as fast as I hope they would be, but I'm not forgetting those stories.**

 **See you !**

 **Next time : Fight to the zenith in the sun temple ! 3 Tiger and 1 Fairy against the Solar Lion !**


	5. Chapter 5 : The sun temple

**Hi guys ! I hope you are all good. I'm back for a new chapter for this fic. I hope you'll like it.**

 **Also, i might already have said that, but i'm gonna switch between 2 fic now : this one (with the two version french and english) and a One Piece one (also with the trad). So the delay between the updates for this fic is gonna be a little more longer than before, but i'll try to update each fic every week. So stay tuned and check my profile for my updates.**

 **Enough chit chat, let's go !**

 **Oh ! I don't own Fairy Tail !**

 **Chapter 5 : The temple of the sun !**

\- " I am really sorry. "

\- " That has to be the 183rd time you apologize, Rogue. We understand that you're sorry. "

In this beautiful morning, our 4 mages and the Exceed woke up quite a while ago now, because they had to meet the Strizer at 10 am outside the city. But as things were right now, the 3 girls of the group, mainly Minerva, were more occupied with complaining about Rogue, who since yesterday, didn't stop apologizing. Rogue whose face was wrapped up in bandages and for a really special but understandable reason. Indeed, the day before, when the dragon's parts found themselves exposed to the 3 mages eyes, the reactions were mainly vocal, shouts in particular, but also physical, mainly with an extremely beautiful Lucy Kick that Rogue took dead on, right on his face, throwing him back in the hot springs. These bandages were thus a reminder of this masterful blow which had left one great imprint across his face. But Rogue, mortified like never in his life by those events, the exhibition of his parts and Minerva's accidental groping, had spent the evening apologizing every 2 minutes and had begun again when the day rose again. He did not want to let this incident tarnish his reputation by making him look like a pervert, but its never-ending excuses began to irritate the girls, mainly Lucy.

\- " Not but really, I swear to you that I had no intention of…" Rogue began again, beginning an umpteenth apologizing session, before being interrupted by Lucy, who couldn't take it anymore.

\- " I swear to god that if you apologize one more time for what happened yesterday, I'll kick your ass so hard you'll land on the Moon ! " Threatened the blonde, giving a dark look at Rogue, who took a step back.

\- " Ah, uuh sor … "

\- " Roooogue. "

\- " … I said nothing. "

\- " That's better. "

This small scene now finished, our 4 mages and their frog dressed Exceed returned to their walk, focusing once again on their task. The fight against the second of those Strizer, a guy who had defeated Orga and Rufus at the same time. The battle will be rough, but they really had no other choices but to get to it. After several minutes of walking, they arrived in front of the abandoned temple where their opponent had made an appointment with them the day before. It was a stone made building cracked and covered with greenery which let them guess since how long it was in dereliction. They entered the building, reaching the open roof court, and remained shocked by the sight in front of them.

As opposed as the outside, the inside was clean and shone as if it had just been built. The stones had retrieved their white tint and golden decoration were put here and there, statues, weapons, engravings, etc, shining thanks to the sun, the rays hitting them directly thanks to the roof-less arena they were in. At the end of the arena, a big golden buddha statue was put in front of some sort of altar with a simple pillow on which a man was sitting cross-legged, in full meditation. Rogue recognized this posture, to have seen him(it) the day before(watch). It was about their opponent. The latter, feeling the presence of the ages, opened his eyes and addressed the newcomers.

\- " Well, it would seem that you are all there. Very well. " He commented, getting up from his pillow, revealing his clothes. Which seemed to limit itself to a kasaya, some kind of robes similar to the one that wore by the Buddhist monks, of ochre color.

\- " Before beginning anything, could we know more about why you want to test us ? Your buddy, the one our friends met last time, wasn't very talkative on this matter apparently. "

\- "…"

In front of this silence, the mages exchanged look, trying to understand the reasons of this mutism before keeping on with the questions.

\- " … Uh, could we at least know your name? " Asked Yukino, trying to obtain an answer out of this character, apparently victim of a mutism as sudden as unforeseen.

\- "…"

\- " Well, if he doesn't want to speak, we aren't going to wait for him to give the signal to begin. " began Rogue, taking a step when suddenly…

\- " I regrettably cannot inform you of our reasons for testing you. "

Rogue was violently cut in his momentum by the answer, brought out of nowhere by the Strizer whereas Lucy was more capable of answering about this sudden change of attitude.

\- "WHAT THE HELL WITH THIS DELAY ?! "

\- " I am Xun Liang, Strizer of the sun. "

\- " I'M GOING TO KILL HIM ! "

\- " If such is your desire, I wish all of you good luck. I have the feeling that you will need it. " commented Xun, a small challenging smile on his face.

\- " The sun? That explains Rufus and Orga's state. He probably used a light powerful enough to make them roast on the spot ! "

\- " Indeed. Well, because you seems to be in a hurry to finish it, we better begin quickly, right? " With this, the mages got in position when suddenly …

\- " GAAAH! "

Xun had disappeared in a blink of an eye to re-appear in the middle of the group of mage and had struck Yukino just under her breast with the palm of his hand, sending her to crash in one of wall of the temple. Others hardly had time to react that they were already struck too, being sent to the ground.

\- " How he can be so fast? " Wondered Minerva, not managing to understand how he had been able to move so quickly without any noise.

\- " My powers alone should answer this question. " said Xun, as if he was giving a clue.

The mages were frozen by this clue before the answer was found, and by none other than Frosch, strangely.

\- " If his powers are the ones of the sun, that has to be the speed of light! " Proposed the Exceed, this revelation made the stress of the mages rise a few level. They had already faced fast opponents, but there it was completely different. How could they face a guy moving at the speed of light ?

\- " Indeed, the light and its speed are my weapons. " Confirmed the Strizer, shaking his head. " But if it can reassure you, I do not really move at this speed. I did not reach that level of control yet. "

\- " Level of control ? You speak about your powers as if it was not yours at the beginning. " Commented Lucy, frowning, trying to understand. Xun, realizing that he had just revealed one rather important information, sighed before resuming.

\- " I was not supposed to reveal this to you, but indeed. All of us Strizers have, in our world, inherited our powers, or rather, we were chosen to receive them. We are still in training, if we can say it like that. "

The eyes of the mages opened wide hearing this revelation. Those guys didn't mastered completely all of their powers and they were already capable of taking them 1 on 4 ? The next fights suddenly felt like they'll be much harder than they thought. The mages group up again, facing their opponent who removed his kasaya, revealing that he wore a sleeveless vest gilded with black drawings, revealing a quite well developed muscled body and an ample black pants with some sorts of slippers.

\- " I think it's time to spice things up a little. Are you ready ? "

Without even expecting any answer, he disappeared once again, striking Yukino once again in the same way as earlier but the result was not the same. While last time Yukino had collided with a wall, this time, she passed through it, breaking it in the process, under the surprised looks of the other mages who tried to strike Xun in reprisals but he had already returned to his starting position as fast as he had left it.

\- " But what's going on? He hit her exactly in the same way, why is it so powerful all of a sudden ? " Asked Lucy, who had rushed to help Yukino, who was still conscious but suffering greatly.

\- " As time goes by, my power gets closer to its peak. When it will be the case, your chances of victories will be reduced to nothing. "

" The source of his power? Peak? *sigh* If only he could speak normally, that would be simpler to understand. " Sighed Minerva, shaking her head before raising her eyes towards the sky. And it is there that she understood.

\- " The sun! " shouted the brunette, drawing the attention of the other mages. "His power increases as we approach noon ! "

\- " which is the moment when the sun is at his highest. " noted Rogue, understanding what it meant. " Then we should beat him and fast. Because if he becomes more and more powerful as time goes by, that is going to quickly become uncontrollable. "

Xun looked at the mages and once he had chosen his target, he used his speed to throw himself on her when suddenly, he was to throw to the side, struck in the face by an unknown strength. When he got up, he noticed that the unknown strength was in fact Rogue, who had intercepted him in his rush thanks to his dragon instinct.

 _" The Dragons Slayers instinct is sharper than what we thought. Managing to get me in spite of my speed is a not an easy feat. "_

He got up but the mages didn't wanted to take any risks, immediately counterattacking while the Strizer was still unable to fight, beginning with Frosch. Taking his human shape, he threw himself on the warrior of light and threw his 2 feet right in his face sending him to the ground, in the line of fire of another mage, a stellar one to be exact.

 _ **OPEN, GATES TO THE GOLDEN BULL AND SCORPION ! TAURUS ! SCORPIO !**_

Both spirits appeared at Lucy's side, the bull grasped his axe Labrys and the scorpion getting in position for their combined attack. Seeing that, Xun tried to escape, but faced an obstacle which he hadn't planned.

 _ **OPEN, GATE OF THE SCALE ! LIBRA !**_

The spirit of the scale appeared and used her power to control the gravity around Xun, nailing him on the spot, rendering him unable to evade what was coming.

 _ **SANDSTORM AXE ALDEBARAN!**_

The sand of Scorpio gathered around the axe of the bull spirit, which then unleashed the accumulated power of their attack and several cyclone of sand crashed down on the Strizer, which took the blow without having time to escape. When the Strizer got up, he was pretty beat up, but still ready to fight. But Minerva decided to add insult to injury.

 _ **NIEL WIELG MION TERSE ELCANTEUS YAGDO RIGORA!**_

Xun was then struck by an eruption of light arising from below him, a statue with intricate design surging with the energy. The explosion was so powerful half of the temple was destroyed, which intrigued the brunette.

\- "Strange. YAGDO RIGORA should be more powerful than that."

\- "I might not be immune to light attacks, but I have enough knowledge about it to know how to counter them"

By pronouncing those words, Xun had got up, his body beaten up by the series of attack, but still ready to fight.

\- "If my speed is not enough anymore, I think that something else should do."

Little by little, his body took on an aura of light which took little by little the form of a lion, his hair pushing until formed some kind of mane, the light around his hands forming some sorts of claws.

 _ **SUNLIGHT LEO !**_

\- " I don't see why taking the appearance of a big shiny cat is going to help you. "

His opponent did not answer and moved in to attack and Lucy was able to notice that this appearance was more useful for him than what she believed. When Yukino tried to reuse the powers of Libra to stop him once again, the gravitational power had no effect anymore and he keep on with his offensive, getting rid of the spirit of the scale without breaking a sweat then heading for the white haired mage, striking her with his claws. Although they didn't cut as much as they looked like, they were super-hot and the wound was overly painful for the poor stellar mage.

\- " But why? Why does Libra's magic didn't work ? "

\- " When I'm in this mode, it's almost as if I was made of light. I am for the most part untouchable. "

This revelation frightened the mages. They already had difficulty in facing him and now they weren't going to be able to even touch him anymore ? While the group re-formed around Yukino, to help her getting up, Rogue began thinking about the situation.

 _" It's becoming unmanageable. We are nearing noon, which means nearing the peak of his power. He is already fast and now we can't even touch him. How we can eat that guy ? His light is going to allow him to get through everything we are going to throw at him … Wait … Unless … "_

Xun began to rush without warning the group of girl but was, much to his surprise, suddenly stopped in his run, in spite of his light dress. He quickly realized why he was suddenly blocked. Rogue, covered in shadows, had just caught him bare handed, or rather shadow covered handed.

\- " The shadows and the light cannot mix. It is one of the only thing which the light cannot mend with. Your lion of light is not going to help you any more, from now on. "

\- " Maybe, but I have many other ways to fight you. "

With this, his dress of light disappeared and he step back. his hands began shining and pointed them towards the mages.

 _ **LIGHT BLAST!**_

Beams of solar energy shot out of his hands, easily evaded by the group. At least, it is what they thought. The beams bounced on the golden decorations on the walls and came back to struck them from behind. The burns left by the beams were so intense that blisters appeared on their skins almost immediately. But somebody was missing. While Xun tried to spot the one who was missing, he felt a presence behind him but regrettably for him, he didn't react fast enough. 2 blades slashed him on his back, leaving 2 wounds forming a cross. Recovering fast, he threw himself on his aggressor, namely Lucy, wearing the Star Dress Cancer and fought with the stellar mage who turned out to be an opponent worthy of his time. But regrettably for Lucy, the sun had kept moving through the sky, now just few minutes away from noon, meaning that the power of Xun increased once again and quickly, she was overwhelmed by her opponent, who took advantage of a breach in her defense to counterattack.

 _ **LEO SUN JAW!**_

He threw a mass of bright energy shaped like the head of a lion at Lucy, the animal opening its mouth to bite on Lucy, sinking its fangs in the mage right side, who was at the same time throw back on a few meter away. While Xun got ready to land a fatal blow at Lucy, he was interrupted by Frosch who threw himself on him but too quickly for his taste, he could not evade it, receiving a furry rocket in his stomach, pulling all the air out of him. All eyes turned towards Frosch and everybody, with the exception of Rogue, was surprised with what they had before them. The frog-like suit had changed color, the pink having been replaced by some kind of bright gold.

\- " What is that? Since when did he know how to do that? " Asked Lucy, turning to Rogue, pride written all over his face.

\- " When Frosch understood that he had not the same physical capacities as Lector, he learnt to use magic. In this particular case, the magic 'Magic Dress' that he learnt allows him to literally cover himself in different kind of magic. In this particular case, light. "

Satisfied with his explanations, they returned to Frosch who, in his human shape, was using its magic to move almost as fast as his opponent, enough to be able to fight, but he was quickly overtaken and floored. While getting up, the Exceed heard his partner.

\- " Frosch! Do the thing ! "

Whereas the other mages didn't understand what Rogue was talking about, Frosch agreed and got back into his original form, just standing there, just in front of Xun who rushed towards him.

\- " No, Frosch ! What are you doing ? Go away ! "

But Yukino's shout did not made the Exceed move, the latter just gazed towards the Strizer, which raised a light covered hand, ready to bring it down on Frosch when suddenly, he stopped, as if he was frozen on the spot. His eyes were locked into the Exceed's one, who looked at him with big eyes and an innocent smile. Xun seemed to hesitate, and it got worse when the eyes of the cat began to moisten, filling with tears, as if he was about to cry (As in the omake ' Welcome back, Frosch ' when he admits to Gray that he is lost). The girls looked at the scene, without understanding the logic behind this attitude, when Xun lowered his arm, raising his head to the sky.

\- " Oh, Lord. Is it allowed to be so cute ? "

 _ **SHADOW'S DRAGON SLASH!**_

Without having time to understand what was happening, Xun was struck right in the face by Rogue, hands coated with shadows, sending him crash in the statue at the end of the temple.

\- " Well done Frosch. You nailed it. "

\- " Fro think so too ! "

 _" What the hell was that ? "_ thought the girls, not knowing what to think of what they had just seen.

Getting up, Xun began laughing slowly, bringing incomprehension in the mages eyes.

\- " It was a good idea to use this aspect in a fight, but it is a little too late for you, regrettably. "

To support his words, he raised a finger towards the sky and the mages raised their head to understand what he meant, and what they saw made them understand what he wanted to say.

It was noon.

All of a sudden, Xun's body exploded, releasing a power and a light of such an intensity that the mages were send back several meter away and found themselves gathered on the same spot. Xun raised his hand towards the sky and absorbed the surrounding light. As he gathered the power, his body shone more and more and a bigger and bigger mass of energy formed between his hands and it took little by little the shape of a lion's head. Rogue threw himself at him, trying to stop him but he got through him, as if he had crossed …

" A mirage. He can also create mirages ? Shit. "

 _ **ZENITH LEO: SHINING SUPERNOVA !**_

A little farther, Xun unleashed the power of his attack, an enormous mass of light shaped like a lion dashing at the mages before exploding, a discharge of light and a so powerful heat that half of the temple was destroyed, the mass of light could be visible miles around. When the light subsided, Xun was surprised. The 3 girls and the cat had certainly taken damage, but a lot less than they should have. The explanation about it had a name: Rogue. He was standing in front of the girls, arms outspread, having used his own body to protect his partners. In doing so, his body was covered with burns and he was barely conscious.

\- " ROGUE! "

Frosch and Minerva shouting seems to re-engage the motor skills of the mages which rushed at the Dragon Slayer and when they reached his side, Minerva used her Territory magic to transport them somewhere else. But they were simply in one of the temple room, trying to buy some time to think of a strategy, even if it wasn't what they were talking about right now.

\- " Why did you not sent us back to the guild, Minerva ? " asked Yukino, worried for his friend.

\- " YOU THINK THAT I ENJOY SEEING HIM IN THIS STATE! " Roared Minerva to answer the question, the 2 other girls having a backlash in front of so much aggressiveness before Minerva recovers. " We cannot leave and let this guy escape us. He assaulted Rufus and Orga, and now he almost killed Rogue. We have to make him pay for what he did. Sabertooth reputation is at stake, here. "

\- " Are you sure that this is not because of your feeling for Rogue ? " looking at the angry, although red, brunette, Lucy kept going. "Anyway, we need a plan to finish that guy. "

\- " The main difficulty, it's that ability to change into light. We have nothing to stop him when he is like that. " precised Yukino when a hoarse voice was heard.

\- " No, there is a way. " Turning their head, the girls saw Rogue, who began to wake up, although he was still suffering a lot from his wounds. " My shadows were able to stop him, you will need me. "

\- " Also Rogue, there is a thing you can use against him, because he is not immune to light. "

Rogue agreed, understanding what Frosch wanted to say.

\- " Yes but we would need to prevent him from moving and at the same time make a diversion. Over and above the fact that I also need Sting to make that thing. " Rogue wasn't very optimistic, when Lucy spoke again.

\- " Hum. I believe that I have an idea. "

/- Meanwhile-/

Xun was still in the center of the temple, observing its surroundings. He knew that the mages were not far and he expected to be attacked at any time. Staying on his guard, he then heard a shout.

 _ **SAND BUSTER!**_

Turning his head, he saw Scorpio shooting an enormous swirl of sand towards him, which he stopped without too much effort. But when the sand disappeared, he was attacked by 2 Minervas, one on each side.

 _"Gemini for an offensive so simple? I am disappointed."_

To rest his thoughts, he stretched both hands towards both Minervas, eliminating them by shooting laser which pierced them. As he expected it, one of the 2 Minerva disappeared but what appeared in its place was not what he was expecting. It was not Gemini, but Lucy in Star Dress Gemini, having used the same kind of power as the twins. Before understanding exactly what was happening, he felt something on his back. Looking behind him, he saw Frosch in his human form hanging on his back, his suit having changed color, now black.

\- "What you are doing is not really useful you know."

\- "Fro doesn't think so too."

Suddenly, Xun felt its body becoming much heavier. He guessed that it was the spirit of the Libra, that he saw beside Yukino, but he wasn't worry at all, this gravity manipulation easily avoidable for him. But somebody was missing and when he saw him, he thought he was hallucinating. Because right next to Rogue stood… Sting.

\- "You need Sting's Magic?" Asked Sting, addressing Rogue. "No problem, piri piri!"

Xun understood then. It was the spirit of the Gemini, which had just taken the appearance, and thus the powers of Sting. _"Two spirits AND a Star Dress? She has much more skills and magic than what we thought."_. Gemi and Mini then made something which surprised Xun: they offered their magic, or rather the Light Dragon Slayer's one, to Rogue who absorbed it and shortly after, his body was covered in what seems to be black scales on his right side and whites on the left. In the same way as Sting when he uses the mode White Shadow Dragon mode.

 _ **BLACK LIGHT DRAGON MODE!**_

The quantity of magic seeping out of his body was so intense that Xun knew he had to evade whatever was coming. Taken by Libra's gravity, he tried to change into light to escape, as he did earlier, but he realized that something was preventing him from doing so. And then he remembered of the black clad Frosch, which was always stuck on his back.

 _" He covered himself with the power of the shadows to prevent me from running away."_ realized Xun, who now understood the real objective of their plan. And it was at this moment that he knew : he was fucked. _" It would seem that I have no way out. Well done. "_

With this, Rogue rushed at Xun, who was released by Frosch, the Exceed putting himself out of harm way, but not leaving the Strizer enough time to escape.

 _ **BLACK LIGHT DRAGON'S ROUGH SILK!**_

Thin beams of lights and shadows shot out from everywhere, piercing Xun everywhere on his body. Within a few moments, Xun was covered in gashes and collapsed on the ground, his eyes rolled upwards and blood gushing out of his mouth. The mages, seeing Xun's, presumed dead, body, exchanged a satisfied smile, which only last for a small time when they saw Rogue, who fell to the ground, succumbing to his wounds.

\- " ROGUE! "

Minerva and Frosch threw themselves on the Dragon Slayer, the brunette looking for his pulse.

\- " His pulse is extremely weak. He needs to get treated as quickly as possible! " Exclaimed Minerva, drawing to her the fearful eyes of the other girls.

\- " We have to get him back to the guild, and fast! " Exclaimed Yukino, before Lucy tried something.

\- " LEOOOOOOOO! "

The spirit of the lion, when he heard his owner's shout, appeared by her side, dropping the womanizer act he was about to use when he saw what was happening.

\- " Leo, Rogue is going to die if we don't bring him to the guild as quickly as possible. Can you make us pass through the spirits worlds ? "

Leo had a short moment of hesitation but since it was an emergency, quickly shook it off and agreed.

\- " No problem. Grab me and don't let go. "

The mages and the Exceed did as they were told, being sucked up towards the spirits world, heading to the guild, leaving behind them Xun, who after some moment was dragged outside of the temple by another strange looking guy.

\- " Well, it would seem that these mages know how to surpass themselves and made up good plans when they are in a pinch. It's good, but when comes the time to face me, it won't be enough. "

 **Ok, here we are. I hope you like this chapter. You might have already noticed it but I'm trying to give a bigger role to the Exceed, so they can be more useful to their partner. I hope you like that idea. I'll spend the next week and week-end working on my One piece fic, French and English, and then I'll get back to that one, so stay tuned !**

 **See you later !**

 **Next time : returning between confession and nervous breakdown ! Holyday to de-stress. Not.**


	6. Chapter 6 :return, breakdown and holyday

**Hello, everybody. I hope that you are all well. We are ready for the 6th chapter of this Fairy Tail fic, with a plot which is going, among others, to introduce a new Strizer. Good Reading!**

 **P.S.: I still aren't the owner of Fairy Tail. I just own my OC, which is already good.**

 **Chapter 6: return, crisis of nerve and vacancy (?)**

\- " Three aces. "

\- " Straight flush! Give the money ! "

\- " Ah the bastard. "

Gray threw his cards on the table, dismayed to have lost once again. He had agreed to play Poker with Cana and Lyon, but the 2 ice mages had quickly lost their will to live, because the card mage was not just able to fight with cards : she could also beat them with playing cards. Somebody knowing the guild which would enter the building at this moment would have a hard time understanding why Gray played poker, but also why the guild, nevertheless crowded was not as lively as usual.

The reason was simple: nobody had the motivation to do anything and for 2 motives.

The first one, it was Happy, whose nobody heard about since his disappearance which occurred shortly after his return from Karista with the other mages who had faced the Strizer of the forest there, Vincenzo, more than 2 days ago. If this absence had struck hard all the mages of Fairy Tail, since Happy had always been some kind of mascot for the guild, ever since his birth, 2 people were more affected than the other by his unforeseen departure. The first one was Charla. While she had spent those last year pushing away the blue Exceed advances, it became harder and harder for her to hide the real nature of her feelings for Salamander's partner, and it was hurting her. And talking about the Salamander, there was somebody who was particularly affected by this disappearance.

After the denial, the anger and the frustration, Natsu was now on the edge of a nervous breakdown. He ate much less than before and it was written all over his face that he had not slept since the disappearance of his partner. Nevertheless, it did not prevent him from continuing to joke, but everybody could see that he was only trying to hide what he really felt. Even Gajeel and Gray were worried for him, especially when he had his 'phases'. This is how the others called the moments when Natsu entered delirious moments, literally, spending his time trying to establish theories, each as farfetched as the others on the disappearance of Happy, under the worried eyes of his companions who looked at him without doing anything, seeing that the only times when they had tried to calm him down, they were violently pushed away. Many though it was because of Lucy and what she said to him at first, since her words were particularly violent, but it only lasted one time. Nobody could bear to see the one who had killed Zeref and Acnologia in this state, but they could only admit that what she had told him was true and had to go out at some point.

Sting, who was granted, in the same way as the other mages hurt by Vincenzo, the authorization to go out of the infirmary, was leaning against the bar, looking at the mages in front of him with a worried expression on his face. Rufus, who had been able to go out too, his skin almost completely healed, was standing next to Sabertooth Master and noticed that he seemed to be thinking.

\- " A problem, Sting? I have no memory of having already seen you that worried. " Noticed Rufus.

\- " It is just that … I have a bad presentiment. " Answered Sting, a heavy ball in his stomach while he thought about the group who left for Akaruidesu. He was more worried for Yukino. He knew she was strong, but those Strizers were powerful and he could only imagine what their current opponent was capable of. But what made him feel bad the most was Rogue. They had always been very close, like 2 brothers and since they had learnt to mix their magics to go into _**WHITE SHADOW DRAGON MODE**_ , this link between them deepened. Therefore, he knew that Rogue had problems, like some kind of empathy.

And alas, God had a particularly twisted sense of humor and decided to bring him the answers to his questions concerning his friends.

All of a sudden, a bright light appeared in the middle of the hall, a light that they had no hard time recognizing, since they already saw that kind of light many time before. It was the light which shone every time a stellar spirit key was used. Indeed, when the light finally subsided, the first thing the mages saw was a man's face with glasses and unmistakable spiky red hair. It was Léo. But Sting had quickly returned its attention on a white haired girl who was running toward him. He recognized Yukino, and was shocked seeing wound covered body, in particular massive fist shaped bruises on her stomach as well as multiple burns.

\- " Yukino! Are you Ok ? Come on, I'll take you to the infirmary. " He had shouted, clasping his hand on the wrist of the young woman before being held back by the latter.

\- " No, wait ! " stopped the white beauty, a light red tint on her face after seeing his concern for her well-being. She freed her wrist from his hand and caught the front of Sabertooth Master's jacket, making him look at her. " My wounds have no importance right now ! But Rogue … He … "

She couldn't manage to finish her sentence, sobbing harder and harder as second passed, tears flowing on her face. Seeing in what state his friend was, he understood that something really bad happened and he turned his head to the rest of the group. Lucy was on her knees, hands on the ground, in the same state as Yukino, as well as Minerva and Frosch. But by looking at the former, Sting thought he was going to die of shock.

Rogue was spread on the ground, in front of Minerva who held his hand. He was covered with wounds, from the cut to the bruise but especially with burns, which covered his whole body, the skin having taken a deep scarlet shade, almost black on all his back. Some blood was running for his nose and mouth to add to the horror already displayed under the mages eyes. Sting recovered quickly from his shock.

\- " ROGUE! "

He threw himself next to his best friend, putting his hands on his neck, searching for his pulse, which he found extremely weak.

\- " WENDY ! SOMEONE, QUICK ! "

The mages gathered around them began rushing and shouting all at once, several people rushing to the sick bay where Wendy was. When the young girl saw in what shape Rogue was, she paused for a moment before rushing to his side, using her magic to establish a first diagnosis.

\- " Quick, bring him to the infirmary ! His life is in danger ! "

Sting ran, carrying the one that he considered like his brother to the sick bay where he put him down on a bed before being pushed towards the exit by Porlyusica who closed the door whereas the 2 healers worked to put save Rogue's life.

/-A few hours later-/

Sting sat in the corridor in front of the infirmary, a seat he hasn't left since Rogue was locked in there. Next to him sat Minerva, head hanging low, eyes red for having cried too much, Frosch asleep on her knees. Yukino joins them, sitting down next to Sting, placing her hand in his, in a comforting manner. The light mage tightened his hand around her, turning his head to face her with a small smile, the white mage returning it before putting her head on his shoulder.

Sting looked at her for a moment, her and her wounds. The girls were really lucky, at least far more than Rogue, since their wounds, even if they weren't superficial, were not that serious either, meaning they had left the infirmary quite quickly, even if Minerva would have loved to stay inside. She had spent a good hour after being released unleashing all of her feelings, that had accumulated since the fight, on the door which would have been broken if it wasn't for an enchantment casted by Wendy.

Returning to Yukino, Sting was thinking a moment before finally putting an arm around her shoulders, bringing her closer. They stayed still for a moment, until the doors of the infirmary finally opened. Minerva had hardly heard the key turning inside the lock that she had already thrown herself on it,, sending the poor and still wounded Frosch to the ground, almost smashing the poor Wendy's head who had opened. They got ready to go into the room when they were stopped by Porlyusica.

\- "If you to go inside, you better behave yourself and not make to much noise. And not for too long, understood ?"

The mages agreed and entered the room, going directly to Rogue's bed, but they had a hard time withstanding what they had right in front of them.

Rogue was cleaned up and as things were right now, he was covered with bandages, as if the 2 healers wanted to make him into a mummy. But the hardest thing for them was to see him connected to a whole lot of machine (Author's note : the same kind of things we have in our hospitals, but a magic version. I'm allowing it), which measured his pulse, to help him breathe, etc. In fact, these machines looked like they were keeping Rogue alive and they hated that. Minerva took a chair to sit down next to him whereas Frosch went to put himself on the bed, close but paying attention to not touch any devices. Sting, eyes locked on his 'brother', asked the nurses.

\- "How is he ?"

\- " The good news is that we managed to stabilize him, so his life isn't in danger any more. But … " Wendy stopped, slightly lowering her head, not able to speak.

\- " But what ? Wendy ? " Pressed Yukino, having a bad feeling.

\- " He is in a coma. And we have no idea of when he will wake up, if he ever wakes up. " Revealed Porlyusica.

This revelation cast a chill on the room and its occupants, who looked at Rogue with a solemn look on their faces in silence, until Wendy starts speaking again, tears streaming down her face.

\- " I am sorry. We did everything we were able to do but his state was … "

\- " Wendy don't cry. You did everything you were able to and even if he is in a coma, at least he is alive. Thank you. " answered Yukino, putting her hands on the young girl shoulders to comfort her.

\- " He is tough, he'll recover. " Asserted Sting.

\- " Very well, but now, GET OUT OF HERE! " Roared Porlyusica, spinning her famous broom, trying to chase the mages out of the infirmary

 _" What about the '_ _not make too much noise_ _' you asked for ? "_ Though Sting while he and Yukino tried to avoid the sweeping. But in a slightly too violent broom swing, the old witch struck Minerva, who hadn't moved from her chair, in the head, the broom breaking on the impact. But Minerva didn't moved, staying focused on Rogue.

\- " I won't leave his side, no matter what you do. I won't move." She simply answered, without turning her head. Seeing the resolution of the girl, Porlyusica sighed, before admitting defeat.

\- " Very well, you can stay, but you stay calm or I take care of you, understood? "

Later, after Wendy took care of Minerva's small head wound, several people had come to see Rogue, mainly members of Sabertooth, who were all really affected by his current state. When the visits ended, the girls managed, at the price of many efforts, to pull Minerva out of the infirmary, which she refused to leave. The mages were decided to make her spill the beans : her obsession not to leave the infirmary couldn't be simply due to a simple friendship. They were thus all gathered around a table in a room that they had 'reserved' in the guild.

\- " Ok, come on. Spill the beans ! " demanded Cana, a barrel of alcohol under her arms, sitting on the table, addressing Minerva, before receiving a light pat on the head by Lisanna.

\- " Cana, don't start. She doesn't need to be assaulted like that. "

\- " That being said, I don't think you can deny your feelings for that long now. " Add Mirajane, who turned to Minerva. " Judging by your reactions concerning Rogue health, you cannot like him as a friend. "

The girls turned towards the ebony haired mage, who seemed to be lost in her though. She raised the head, her face red in embarrassment.

\- " Even if I was really in love with him, what are the chances for him to return my feeling ? " This semi-statement of her love, coupled with the Minerva's doubt, made the others smiled, which reassured her immediately.

\- " Honestly, I am sure that he is as crazy about you that you are about him. But you will never know as long as you kept those feeling for yourself. " comforted Levy. " As soon as he will wake up, go for it. I am sure that you won't regret it. "

\- " I wonder if you are that well placed to give this kind of advice, seeing the time you needed to get together with Gajeel. " Teased Cana, who was already drinking her 3rd barrel, which caused a mini-quarrel between the two girls, who quickly drew everyone's attention, Erza trying to calm them down with a sword. Minerva smiles at the show, swearing that when Rogue will wake up, she'll tell him how she feels. She won't stay in the dark about her feeling anymore.

/- Several days later, at Lucy's place -/

Gloomy.

It was more or less the state of mind at the guild, and to be more precise of the mages that were there. Since the return of the group who left for Akaruidesu, there had been no real good news. Rogue's condition had slightly improved, but he still hadn't woken up and the mages were less and less optimistic on his hypothetical awakening. The other cause of concern is that there were still no news about Happy's situation.

Lucy, already almost totally healed, thinking about the disappearance of the Exceed, couldn't help but think about Natsu. She did not regret what she had told him, but she had to admit that to see him in this state, so depressed and almost lifeless, and to know that it was partially her fault, hurt her. After all, she had not totally given up her feelings for him. But she couldn't do a 180 ° on her behavior: she had made a decision and planned to assume it up to the end.

She was at her home, trying to relax after all that happened these last days when all of a sudden, she heard noises outside, not far from her home. She opened the window but saw nothing. She thus decided to go out and, a dozens of meters away, in an alley, she saw Natsu, who seemed to be searching everywhere around him. But Lucy was more surprised by his appearance than his behavior. He was dirty, proof that his last shower was many days old now but especially thinner, she had no memory of seeing him in this shape.

\- " Natsu? What are you doing here ? And what happened to you ? "

By hearing the voice of his partner and best friend, he turned to look at her, with a gaze Lucy could only associate to a psycho. He returned without a word to his search, mumbling incomprehensible sentences but where we could discern words as ' Happy ' or 'hide'.

\- " You are wasting your time looking for him, Natsu. "

The rain had begun falling when she said those words, Natsu turning around towards her all of a sudden, a demented spark in his eyes.

\- " What do you mean, I'm wasting my time ? We aren't gonna find him if we stop looking for him! " Roared the dragon, taking the stellar mage by surprise before she got back to her senses.

\- " What I meant to say is that if Happy was still in town, we would have already found him ! He left, Natsu! "

\- " AND WHERE WOULD HE HAVE GO, THEN ?! HE HAS NOWHERE ELSE TO GO! "

\- " IF HE WANTS TO RETURN, HE WILL RETURN. WOULD IT BE TOO MUCH TO ASK YOU TO TRUST THE OTHERS, SOMETIMES ? "

\- " It's not trust problem. " Natsu had turned the volume down, talking between clenched teeth. But Lucy didn't lowered her. She continued, both mages now completely drenched by the rain, falling upon the city in heavy drops.

\- " THEN WHAT ? IF YOU TRUST HE WILL COME BACK, WHY ARE YOU BEHAVING LIKE THAT ?! "

\- " BECAUSE I KNOW THAT IT'S MY FAULT ! "

Natsu's confession brought a silence in the alley which was interrupted only by the pouring rain. Drenched, they looked at each other, without a word. Lucy was shocked when she saw Natsu breaking down, his eyes going from anger to sadness.

\- " Everything is my fault. " he then said with a small voice

Then he fell on the knees, in the middle of the alley, Lucy getting closer to him, kneeling down to be at his level. When she saw the tears stream down on his face, she understood that Natsu was clearly feeling down.

\- " You were right. As usual. If I had paid attention to what I say and what I'm doing, he wouldn't have left. And you would have never yell at me like you did the other day. I'm sorry. "

To see Natsu crying in front of her hurt Lucy. She had almost never seen him crying. The last time, it was when Igneel had been killed by Acnologia.

\- " I didn't realize that his departure could affect you so much. " She began before being interrupted by Natsu, who looked at her, eyes full of reproach.

\- " But Lucy, I found Happy when he was still an egg. I took care of him, I saw him hatching, I always had him by my side. " His voice broke down, while he began sobbing which broke Lucy's heart. " In a sense, he is like my son. "

Lucy opened wide eyes. What Natsu just said hit her like a truck. What kind of idiot was she ? She was so focused on Natsu's mistake, that she had forgotten everything they lived together, up to their origin. She had been particularly selfish. She then took Natsu in the arms, the fire mage's head resting on her shoulder where he let himself go, crying for his missing 'son'. At this moment, Lucy realized that she was wrong and that Natsu was more sensitive than she though. When Natsu began to calm down, the rain had lost in intensity.

\- "Come to my place. A good meal and a hot bath will be good for you. "

Natsu agreed without a word and got up, Lucy taking him to her home. After Natsu took a bath and got something to eat (a lot), he got to the door, getting ready to go back home. But before, he turned around to face Lucy.

\- " Once again, I'm sorry. I behaved like a moron. "

\- " It's nothing. To be honest, we are all tensed with what is taking place. I would like to see the guild and the others act like they were before. "

\- " Yeah. That would be cool. "

Without adding anything, they said goodbye to each other and Natsu went back to home.

/-The next day, at the guild-/

Lucy had just opened the door of the guild and went to the bar to have breakfast, observing the other mages, searching for somebody.

\- " Where is Levy? Is she sick? " Asked Lucy to Mirajane.

\- " Not. She took some holidays, far from what is happening right now. We can't really blame her. She even took Gajeel with her. " Ended the barmaid with a smile. Lucy returned it to her, but suddenly, the door exploded, almost literally, revealing Natsu, who seemed in a great shape, completely different from the one he was these last days.

\- " I AM BACK! " Roared the Salamander loudly, as he used to. " I need to punch something. Hey, the ice cube, come here. "

\- " You really want to fight, matchstick ? I don't really want to fight against a depressive. "

\- " WHO'S THE DEPRESSIVE, SHITTY SNOWMAN ?! "

Quickly, a big fight began in the guild, the tables and the chairs being thrown into the air and looking at it, Lucy wasn't able to refrain herself from thinking that everything had almost become as it was before.

 _" … I would like to see the guild and the others act like they were before … "_

She opened wide eyes suddenly, remembering what she had said to Natsu last evening and turned her eyes to the fire mage, who was in a fight with Gray at the moment.

 _" Did he voluntarily provoke a fight, just because I wanted the guild to be like it was before? "_

Shaking her head to erase the red tint which had risen to her cheeks, she just look at the scene with a smile, happy that for the first time in more than a week, the guild seemed to have found again its real nature.

/-Tetsuga, in the northwest of Hargeon-/

\- " Remind we why you dragged me here, shrimp? "

\- " To rest. With what is taking place at the moment, I thought that we needed some holidays. "

\- " That YOU needed holydays. The more time goes by and the more I want to test myself against one of those dudes. "

Levy and Gajeel had just arrived at Tetsuga, a city renowned for its forges and its experts craftmens. For Levy, leaving Magnolia was enough for relaxing and forgetting her bothers. She chose to come here because she knew that if she wanted Gajeel to follows her, he needed an additional motivation.

\- " So, it's some kind of festival in the city today, isn't it? " asked Gajeel, walking beside Levy, walking to the center of the city.

\- " Yes, the blacksmiths of the city use this day to raise stands through the city to show their creations, make demonstrations to the tourists and even fights to test their best weapons. "

\- " Kihihi, you know me well, there no doubt about that, shrimp. "

\- " Thank you. AND STOP CALLING ME SHRIMP! "

\- " Maybe you'd prefer ' my shrimp ' ? "

The Gajeel's sneaky remark had the effect wanted, making Levy blush heavily, who began stuttering.

\- " I-I, uh, yes, well, maybe … "

Gajeel chuckled before sliding Levy's hand in his, pulling her towards him. The blue girl gave him a smile before picking up their pace, under the watchful eyes of a Panther Lily proud and happy at the same time.

/-Later, main square of the city-/

As we could expect it for a festival, the city's central square was crowded, covered with stands where the craftsmen of the city made a demonstration of their talents to the numerous tourists. Many sculptures made of metal were everywhere, tourists going from a stand to the other one with the sound of hammers and other tools used by craftsmen filling the air. Levy did not miss to notice that Gajeel seemed to appreciate the festival, even if it was not necessarily as she thought it would. Indeed, Gajeel seemed more hungry than excited by what he saw. All this displayed high-quality metal was too much for him. However, one of the stands drew his attention in particular. Indeed, on the stand stood a statue of a dragon made in metal. Brass pieces almost gave life to the eyes of this dragon whose look seemed to follow those who looked at him. Around the dragon was many kind of extremely advanced mechanism which seemed to move without any magical intervention. Gajeel even paused for a moment to look at the dragon.

\- "Metalicana?" Murmured Gajeel, when Levy noticed, observing the dragon herself.

\- "It is true that he looks like him. They almost looked like twins."

\- "Twins ? What do you mean ?"

The 2 mages and the Exceed raised their head, to be faced with the man who own the stand. A man as tall as Gajeel, with very short fair hair and grey eyes, which seemed to be made of silver, behind a pair of glasses which he put back in place with his thumb. He was dressed in a grey three piece suit, with a white shirt. The tie was the same grey as the suit and the polished shoes were jet black.

\- "On what you based this dragon?"

The tone of Gajeel was sharp. He had to know how this guy had been able to make an exact copy of Metalicana.

\- "On my imagination." Answered the unknown with a small backward movement facing the aggressiveness of Gajeel. "I always imagined myself dragons made of metal, like some kind of armor. Is there rules for that ?"

Gajeel was not really convinced, chewing on an object of metal he had in his hand.

\- "Hey, wait a minute? What are you eating here ?"

Gajeel stopped and opened his hand, revealing what remained of one of the small machines which was on the stand. Seeing it, the manager opened wide eyes and focused his attention back on Gajeel, who started eating again like he didn't gave a shit.

\- "Oh, ok, Don't mind the facty that you are eating my creations. Do you need any salt with that ?" Threw the manager, to which Gajeel answered with the same tone.

\- "It's a good idea. Do you have any ?"

\- " GET OUT OF HERE, NAIL-HEAD ! AND MAKE SURE I WON'T SEE YOU AGAIN ! "

\- " How did you call … Gah ! " Gajeel didn't had time to finish his sentence, cut by Levy who had just hit him in his ribs.

\- " That's enough, we are going. Sorry " She bowed before the manager to apologize for what happened and got away with Gajeel.

\- " You really have to learn to control your stomach. You are becoming more and more like Natsu in this department. "

\- " Do not compare me to this idiot. I at least, I have the ability to know when I love somebody. " These words made Levy blush when Lily intervened.

\- " Having that said, there is still the reason on how he could make this statue of Metalicana. I wonder if … "

\- " Levy ?! Gajeel !? Panther ?! "

The 3 turned around, surprised when they ended up facing with Jet and Droy, who seemed as surprised to see them as they were.

\- " Jet? Droy? " began Levy before being cut by Gajeel, who took a step forward to place himself between Levy and her 2 partners of Shadow Gear, as to establish his dominance.

\- " What the hell are you doing here? If you followed us, you are going to regret being born. "

\- " No, not at all. We are here on a mission. " Answered Jet, taking a step back seeing the clearly pissed of Gajeel.

\- " A mission? Here? Of what kind? " Asked Panther, who had settled on Gajeel's head.

\- " In fact, it is not here strictly speaking, but " began the speed mage before being to cut by an iron sword appearing suddenly under his throat.

\- " You made a detour when you knew that we were there then, right?! "

\- " NO ! Let us finish explaining! " Cut Droy who took where Jet had stopped. " In fact, the mission began in a village several kilometers away from here. Apparently, metal objects had begun vibrating, even flying in certain cases. In addition to that, the villagers said they heard strange machine like noises. We found a track and we followed it up to here. "

\- " But if we take into account the current situation, this quest might be more complicated than we planned. "

\- " How's that? " Asked for Levy, intrigued by the last sentence of the plant mage.

\- " The village where we began the mission is situated not far from the forest where the Strizers appeared. "

This news caused different kind reactions on the mages. Besides the surprise, Panther was worried because it meant that he was probably not far away from here. Gajeel exulted like a kid knowing that he was, without a doubt, going to be able to face one of these dudes and Levy was frustrated. She decides to take some holidays, and they had to cross a Strizer? Fate could be cruel sometimes.

/-The evening-/

Nevertheless, the day kept going without any trouble. Gajeel, Panther and Levy were able to relax without real problems while Jet and Droy tried to find some clue for their job. But while the vacationers were on their way to the hotel, they heard a strange noise, like a drill used next to hammers banging on some metal. It would have been completely normal in a city of blacksmiths, but not at one o'clock when it was forbidden to work, risking of being victim of noise complaint. Their fears were confirmed when they saw Jet and Droy rushing to them.

\- "Jet, Droy. These noises, it is …"

\- "Yes, the same as those whom we investigate on." Cut Jet, understanding what the blue haired mage question were going to be.

\- "OK. Let's go see that." Gajeel had answered with a carnivorous smile on his face, pulling Levy by her wrist, taking her against her will.

Arriving at the source of the noise, they were faced a huge building made of red brick, covered with a black metal roof, a metal which could be found on the windows, doors and long chimney from where escaped black and thick smoke, a sign that it was occupied. The mages entered and they knew that they were expected.

There were ovens made of metal, quite an arsenal of tools used by blacksmith, from hammer to crowbar, chains, molds of various forms and sizes. But the problem was that everything was piled up on the sides, near the walls, leaving a vast space in the middle of the foundry. Basicly, it was an arena.

\- "It is a trap." Noticed Droy.

\- "I wouldn't say that."

Going out of the shadow at the end of the building, Gajeel, Levy and Panther saw the man who owned the stand with Metalicana's statue. He wore the same suit, his jacket opened, the tie slightly undone, hands in his pockets.

\- "It's more like, I waited for you."

\- "If you didn't necessarily wanted to attract us here, why this statue of Metalicana?" Asked Levy, already on her guard.

\- "I wanted more or less to made you doubt. Oh but where are my manners, I didn't even introduced myself. Dmitri Alekseïev ..."

 _ **NAIL GUN!**_

He raised his hand towards the 4 mages and wave of nails of several centimeters rain on them. Jet, Droy and Panther, in its human form, evaded by diving on sides. Gajeel took place in front of Levy, covering himself with metal to protect them both.

\- "Strizer of metal. Privyet."

\- "Metal, right? It's perfect." Began Gajeel by picking up nails and swallowing them whole. "I felt hungry."

\- "Yeah, your talent to eat metal is going to be very problematic. But I'm not only manipulating the metal. I am also the king of machines. Demonstration."

 _ **SPRING BOOST!**_

Changing his legs into springs, Dmitri jumps up on Gajeel, arms covered with metal and they began to exchange blows. But it lasted only one moment. Suddenly, handcuffs appeared on the Gajeel's wrists then chains appeared from a machine nearby, catching him and dragging him towards some kind of armchair, strapping him on it.

\- " Have a safe trip. "

Suddenly, the chair began moving forward following a rail, at the speed of a train. Gajeel was immediately neutralized, violent nausea striking him, while the car on which he was strapped disappeared in the foundry. Levy, Panther, Jet and Droy could only stare powerless, while Dmitri turned around towards them.

\- " Well, now, it's between you and I. "

 **OK here we are, I hope that you liked this chapter. See you soon for a new one. See you next time.**

 **Next time: Shadow Gear vs Metal Strizer : hide and seek in the foundry ! Objective : Free Gajeel ! Dragon of steel and Zigurat !**


	7. Chapter 7 : Hunting in the forge

**Hello everybody! I hope you are all well and healthy. Either way, we are ready for this new chapter. I hope you'll like it. Now let's stop talking and do some writing !**

 **Well, there's one last small thing : I'm not Fairy Tail's owner, of course.**

 **Let's go !**

CAPITAL LETTER: words written by Solid Script.

 **Chapter 7 – Hunting in the forge.**

The silence. Absolutely no noise. A stillness so deep and strong a cemetery would feel like a night club in comparison. Put simply, the dark hallways of the forge, barely lit by the old industrials lamps which casted creepy shadow on the red brick walls and the many metallic elements serving as 'decoration', were plunged into a silence which, considering the current situation, meant nothing good. Nevertheless, in one of the corridors of the factory, sounds of footsteps could be heard, the rhythm of the steps indicating that someone was running. The runner, after a several minute race, stopped, hiding behind a barrel filled with scraps of metal. Purple jacket and overall torn in many places, out of breath, Jet, while looking tired, also seemed worried, as if wasn't sure of something.

\- " I really hope that you know what you're doing, Levy. " He mumbled, looking over the barrel, a man silhouette in a suit with tucked up sleeves approaching at the end of the corridor.

\- Flashback -

Levy, Panther, Jet and Droy were still facing Dmitri, the latter face split in half by a large smile, whereas Gajeel had just disappeared in the labyrinth-like forge, nailed on a minecart, completely knocked out because of the typical motion sickness of the Dragons Slayers. Levy's brain was seconds away from burning completely because of the many ideas chaining one after the other at a furious pace in her head, trying to find a way to get out of this situation.

\- " Then, now that nailed face is gone, I can focused completely on you 4. But I am going to try something different. Do you want to play a little game ?. "

\- " A game ? What do you mean ? " Asked Levy, already knowing that he wasn't talking about a game like the ones Levy was thinking of.

\- "You see, your dragon friend is actually on his way to meet a very special furnace created by myself. I can tell you that the heat of this furnace will be enough to melt everything, even his own scales." This revelation brought down the mages and Exceed mood. They didn't think that such a thing was possible, but at the same time, coming from somebody who came from another world, they were not going to take any risk. " This furnace is in the center of my forge. If you manage to reach it before him, you might have a chance to save him. But don't go thinking I'm going to let you do as you please. I'll be here to make sure you all fail and join him. " He paused for a moment before starting again, ego and over-confidence gushing out of his body. " But seeing that you are far from being at the same level as me, I'm going to give you some head start. 3 minutes. After those 3 minutes, I'll chase you down. Is it okay for you ? "

The members of Fairy Tail felt anger rising up in them, not liking being underestimate like that by this guy, who was just bringing out a deckchair and laid there, an alarm clock resting on a small table beside him, a book in his hands. But Panther was not going to let this guy look down at him with disdain without doing anything. Taking its human shape, he brought out his sword and spoke to the others.

\- " Go find Gajeel. I'm going to stay here to take care of this guy. "

\- " But Panther, we can't … "

\- " GO ! " shouted Panther, interrupting Droy. The 3 mages looked at each other before running all together to the forge hallways, leaving the Exceed behind them. Glancing towards his only remaining guest, Dmitri raised an eyebrow before returning to its book.

\- " There is more than 2 minutes remaining. You are really going to stay there, like a statue ? "

*SLASH* With his sword, Panther destroyed the alarm clock, sending it crashing on the ground.

\- "Time out. " Simply stated Panther.

\- " *sigh* If you insist. "

/- Meanwhile -/

Levy, Jet and Droy had stopped in some hallways, getting their breath back on track. In the distance, they could hear the noise of the confrontation between Dmitri and Panther.

\- " What do we do ? We can't leave Panther alone against that guy ? "

\- " He did not tell us to leave just for us to get back there. We have to get Gajeel. " reminded Levy. " We have to get Gajeel back before he reached that furnace. "

\- " The problem is that this guy will not let us do as we want and I'm afraid that Panther won't be able to hold him for a long time. " indicated Droy, not really motivated by the situation.

After a silence which lasted a few seconds, Levy raised her head, an idea in her head, or rather a small part of an idea.

\- " I think that I have a plan. "

This is when a deafening noise similar to a collapsing wall echoed through the forge, taking the 3 mages by surprise. Then a voice echoed through the hallways. Dmitri's voice to be more precise.

\- " One down. Three left. "

\- End of Flashback -

After that, Jet, Droy and Levy had agreed on the plan and split up, each running in a different direction, each one of them hoping to find the furnace before Gajeel. Jet was the unluckiest of the three, since he was found by Dmitri shortly after. He had tried to face him, but just like Gajeel, this big metal bender could cover himself with iron, rendering his attack ineffective. But when he saw what he had next to him, he had an idea.

\- " It's useless to hide, I'll find you wherever you are. You are only delaying the inevitable. It would be better for you to give up. "

By taking a turn in a hallway, he was faced with Jet, who was standing in front of him, some steps away. Without a word, the speed mage rushed at him. Dmitri just covered his right hand in metal and throw a hook towards Jet, who literally shattered on the impact. Dmitri opened wide eyes, without understanding what just happened.

 _ **FALCON HEAVENWARD!**_

Immediately after 'Jet' broke into pieces, the Strizer was violently struck in the back by the real Jet, the blow propelling him in a wall, breaking it in the process. Getting up, he just had the time to intercept Jet, coming to strike again.

\- " A mirror. I'm feeling bad, falling for such a simple trick. "

\- " The simplest stratagems are often the best. And just so you know … " Jet free himself from Dmitri's hold, taking a few steps back. " Fairy Tail mages are many things, but we certainly aren't the kind of people to give up, especially when a friend is in danger. " These last words made Dmitri laugh, putting his glasses back in places with his thumb, his suit slightly torn.

\- " Friend ? You and Gajeel, friend? I believed that you and Droy didn't liked him, mainly because of Levy ? "

\- " We moved on. We aren't going to let this kind of feelings throw away our friendship with Levy. They love each other and we accept that. "

 _ **CANNON ARM!**_

Dmitri had a small smile, his arm changing in a sort of cannon, which it pointed towards Jet, ready to fire, but as the shot was about to be fired, plants appeared from the ground and caught the cannon, which fired in the ground. By turning his head, the metal warrior saw Droy far off, looking satisfied, but Dmitri just smiled even more.

 _ **CHAINSAW ARM!**_

His cannon changed, becoming a chainsaw, getting rid without problem of the plants which held him whereas his body began to cover itself with metal, some pointy spot appearing on the top of its body.

 _ **IRON HEDGEHOG SPIN DASH!**_

He rolled himself up, like a hedgehog, his spikes stretching out before rushing towards Droy, reducing to shred everything he had on his way. The poor plant mage, not being an expert in dodging because of his body, wasn't able to evade completely the assault, being some of his back torn up and impaled. Jet rushed at his friends to help him getting up whereas the Strizer took back his normal shape. The 2 tried to run away, to save some time, but regrettably for them, Dmitri had other projects.

 _ **STEEL TRAPDOOR!**_

A steel door suddenly appeared out of the ground in front of them, blocking them in a corridor, now becoming a dead end, without any escape for them. They swallowed the lump in their throat before turning around, facing Dmitri, arms transformed into 2 enormous minigun. Without further ado, he began firing on the 2 mages, bullets impacts raising a thick cloud of smoke. When this smokescreen of some sort disappeared, he didn't see, as he expected it, 2 mages filled with bullets, but rather an enormous WALL across the hallway. Dmitri lowered his weapons, surprised for a moment, before heaving a sigh, understanding easily why this thing had appeared out of nowhere. Turning his head to the right, him perceived Levy, standing up and looking at him with a hard and cold glare.

\- " Oh dear, and I believed that you would have rushed to save your small dragon. Color me surprised, honestly. But at least, I'm won't have to search the whole place to find you. "

 _ **SCRAP IRON BLADED HAND !**_

The hands of Dmitri covered themselves with metal junks and with jagged blades and he rushed at Levy. Or at least, it is what he wanted to do. Instead, he was cut in his run, frozen in his tracks. Looking down, he realized that he had just walked on a GLU drawn on the ground. Raising his eyes towards the blue haired witch, he just had time to see her write something else.

 _ **SOLID SCRIPT : BATTERING RAM !**_

 _ **IRON SKIN !**_

Dmitri covered himself with a skin of iron whereas an enormous BATTERING RAM rushed towards him. But the impact was so violent that even with his protection, he was violently thrown back, the metal skin bending because of the strength it had, crushing his stomach, whereas he got through several walls. Levy took advantage of it to go see Jet and Droy, who had suffered the shootings despite the protection created by Levy. On the other hand, Dmitri got up with difficulty, breathlessly and clearly irritated. He threw his vest away, destroyed by the last attack, getting up and glaring at Levy. But this is when he noticed some strange symbols almost everywhere on the walls, ground and even ceiling.

\- " Runes? "

\- " I haven't the same level as Freed concerning runes, but I can handle myself. At least enough to set up trap in this place. Good luck. " ended Levy, a small smile on her lips.

\- " Don't go thinking that some drawings will be enough to held m… *BOOM * "

Dmitri had stopped, charred up by an explosion due to one of the traps Levy set up, who was in the entrance of the hallway where the 3 mages stood. There literally was smoke coming out of his ears and even a whistling noise. Like a pressure cooker whose pressure was about to make it explode.

And it did exploded. The mages rushed in the hallways, trying to save time, while avoiding the bursts of metal, bullets and explosions launched by Dmitri. One of the things he hated more than anything, was getting laughed at. And between the runic traps, Levy's words, the speed attacks of Jet and the vegetal obstacles of Droy, there was enough to make him lose it completely. He finally succeeded in trapping them in the warehouse of the forge, which was filled with metal objects of all kinds, from statues made of metal to steel beams.

\- " Well here we are. There, I am going to finally have fun. "

 _ **STEEL BEAM RAIN !**_

He stretch out his arms to the sides, using his power to lift the steel beams stored in the room, making them levitate over him before making them rain on the 3 mages, who evaded as well as they could, but getting hit nevertheless. Jet was the first one to get up, face covered in blood, throwing himself on the Strizer, but the latter was waiting for him.

 _ **LEAD SHACKLES !**_

Enormous lead handcuffs stuck to Jet's feet, nailing him literally on the spot, unable to dodge the rest.

 _ **SPIKED KNUCKLES !**_

Spikes appeared on the Strizer fingers, which he used to suddenly punch the mage in Jet's stomach of Jet, which was thrown away, blood flowing out of him.

\- " JET ! You bastard ! "

 _ **KNUCKLE PLANT !**_

Plants shaped like fists rushed at Dmitri, who easily countered.

 _ **BLADE EDGE !**_

With the back of his hand, as sharp as a razor blade, he cut the plants before pointing his second hand towards the mage.

 _ **CRECENT BLADE RUSH !**_

He threw a volley of blades shaped like crescent moon on Droy, covering his body in deep cut all over his body, before the mage finally couldn't bear it anymore, collapsing and leaving only Levy in front of the Strizer, whose sadistic smile meant nothing good. He covered himself with metal once again, the fingers changing into wide claws, approaching slowly the mage, who nevertheless seemed not afraid. And it was because Dmitri walked once again on her runes which triggered a cloud of black smoke, covering the Strizer. The latter, blinded, then could not saw Levy beginning a new offensive.

 _ **SOLID SCRIPT : ACID !**_

\- "AAAAAAAAAAAAHHH!" Dmitri was splashed with a green liquid so corrosive that his metal melted almost immediately, attacking even his skin. Without leaving the slightest chance to his opponent, Levy kept on with the attack.

 _ **COMBO SCRIPT: EXPLOSIVE HAMMER!**_

She wrote a huge HAMMER, which one of the M 'legs' had lengthened to serve as a grip. All the surface of the hammer was also covered with EXPLOSION. She swung her hammer straight in Dmitri's face who, too busy trying to subside the pain due to the acid, did nothing to protect himself, thus he took the strike dead on, the impact of the hammer combined with a violent explosion sending him at the other side of the room, breaking yet another wall in the process. He had a hard time getting up, the acid having disappeared, angrier than ever.

\- "You little bitch. You are going to pay for that."

 _ **CHAIN RUSH !**_

Uncountable chains arose from everywhere around Dmitri, rushing on Levy. She tries with everything she got to dodge them, but some of those iron shackles finally caught her by the wrist, sticking her to the wall, in a position of crucifixion, which reminded a lot of thing to Levy.

\- "Nail to a wall, totally vulnerable. I know that it is the kind of situation that you know quite well. The last time, it was on a tree, exposed to the inhabitant of Magnolia in the center of the city, with your 2 buddies next to you."

Levy remembered perfectly that moment, which had trigerred the war between Fairy Tail and Phantom Lord several years ago. A time when Gajeel was not one of them yet. The only time when the one who was now her boyfriend had hurt her for real. Dmitri, on his part, had changed his arm in a kind of huge scalpel and approached Levy dangerously. He slapped her with a hand covered in steel, the poor witch finding herself on the verge of unconsciousness because of the violence of the slap.

\- "Well, I admit that you have guts, for a bookworm. Then it's time to see what you are made of, internally."

 _ **IRON DRAGON'S CLUB !**_

Without a warning, a strong pillar of some kind made of metal broke the wall on which Levy was attached, lengthening to go strike Dmitri in the stomach then taking him towards the closest wall, making him pass through it. Dmitri got up very fast, totally surprised, before seeing Gajeel walking into the room, Levy in his arms.

\- "WHAT!? But how could you free yourself?"

Gajeel looked at Levy before smiling, turning to Dmitri, a carnivorous smile on his face.

\- "Shrimp has much more resource than what we could believe."

\- Flashback-

Gajeel was totally lethargic, paralyzed by his motion sickness, which prevented him from releasing himself, whereas the minecart continued his journey, the Dragon Slayer seemingly condemned to a sad fate. But while Gajeel could feel his skin becoming hotter and hotter by the minute, sign that he was approaching the furnace, the cart had an abrupt and unforeseen movement, falling of the rail attached to the ceiling, ending up crashing on the ground. After a few seconds, the time for Gajeel to get over the commotion and realize what happened, he free himself from his prison and raised his head towards the rail to try to understand why he had fallen : it was clearly not something that this metal dude had planned. By looking closer at the rail, he saw remnant of a green liquid, some drops of which fell on the concrete ground, the liquid smoking while he dissolved the ground away. Gajeel then smile, an expression of obvious pride painted on his face, before leaving as fast as possible, following his nose, tracking down a scent he knew too well.

\- End of the Flashback-

\- "She is the only one around here who can use acid, as you probably already noticed. " The taunting remark of Gajeel made Dmitri grumble, remembering the burn of the acid on his skin. " She found the furnace and just destroyed the rails knowing that it would be enough for freeing me and she then came to help her friends. Right now, I couldn't be any more prouder of my shrimp. "

\- " Yeah, well I hope that this pride is going to help you survive. " Dmitri removed his white shirt, throwing it to the side, finding itself only dressed with a white docker, revealing a torso and arms covered with menacing tattoos, sign that his life wasn't always filled with suit and good deeds. " Because I won't hold back anymore. "

Both opponents covered themselves with metal and threw themselves at each other. And the fight totally changed in style. The 2 men made of metal exchanged blow after blow, with swords, with fists and even with head. The whole ordeal complemented by bullets shooting and even missiles by Dmitri, but also with destructive roar by Gajeel. The violence of the exchanges was such that the air moved by the blows was enough to crack the walls, ground and ceiling, which eventually fell into pieces, when it was not one of the 2 fighters which passed through it, thrown in it by the other one. However, little by little, Dmitri began to get the upper hand, manhandling Gajeel more and more, throwing him after a series of exchange in a pile of crates.

\- " You are quite good, I won't lie. But you are only iron where I can be all the metals I want to be. So you probably know that you have no chance of winning. " But Dmitri noticed rather quickly that the dragon was not listening to him, or at least not anymore. He was busy with eating what he had found in the crates he crashed in. Dmitri, changing his arm into a long sword of metal, walked to the dragon but stopped by feeling something crunching under his foot. Looking down, he saw …

\- " Is that charcoal ? Why would he eat charcoal … " Then by seeing that the metallic skin covering Gajeel had changed shades, he understood, opening wide eyes. " Oh the bastard. "

 _ **STEEL DRAGON'S SWORD !**_

A wide sword of steel struck Dmitri, cutting the metal like butter, cutting him all across his torso. Gajeel didn't even let the time to the Strizer to get over it, the dragon taking a deep breath.

 _ **STEEL DRAGON'S ROAR !**_

The burst of steel broke out on Dmitri who was sent to the other side of the room and crossed the wall at the end. Gajeel got up but didn't understood why the Strizer wasn't getting up: Gajeel couldn't imagine that it was so easy to eliminate one of those guys. And indeed, he finally saw the Strizer getting up through the smoke.

\- " Eating the coal to absorb the carbon and go from iron to steel. Well done. But I think it's probably the time to finish all this. "

 _ **ZIGURAT, ARMOR FORTRESS !**_

When the smoke disappeared, Gajeel was left speechless. In front of him stood Dmitri, covered with an armor which looked like it come straight out of science fiction movies. Gajeel quickly recovered, making a sword of steel, which he used to cut Dmitri, but the blade didn't left the slightest crack on it. Dmitri simply raised his arm, revealing a sort of hole in his palm.

 _ **PALM BLASTER!**_

A burst of energy shoot out of the palm of the armor, propelling Gajeel through several walls, making him reach the entrance hall, just next to the front door, where the battle began, Dmitri approaching, its armor making robotics noise with each step.

\- " This armor is made of steel on several inches in thickness. And it is literally covered with weapon, I have basically no blind spot. "

As to prove its statements, a cannon situated on his back opened, shooting a burst of energy at Jet which had just arrived the room, but his speed allowed him to evade the shooting just in time, the blast just destroying the wall behind. But the shockwave was enough to send flying the poor mage who crashed into a wall. Gajeel got up and threw himself on Dmitri, determined to beat his opponent. But the Zigurat armor turned out to be far too powerful for a single mage.

\- " That's enough, lizardman. Stop struggling. It's the… *FWOOSH*. "

But for several mages, it wasn't the same.

The Strizer was cut by a smoke screen, more exactly a cloud of coal dust, thrown by Jet, who now used its speed to turn around the Strizer, creating a whirlwind of ash which blocked totally Dmitri's sight, and all around him. Dmitri heaved a sigh of impatience, his armor opening on the torso.

 _ **VACUUM ROTOR !**_

Some kind of turbines began spinning, sucking up ashes and removing this cloud. He raised his palm towards Jet, which had gone to see Gajeel to help him getting up. He prepared his shot when suddenly …

*BLAM* An enormous sword appeared, going out of the ceiling and swinging like a pendulum, hitting the Strizer with all its might, sending him at the end of the room. Dmitri got up, his armor still in one piece, although the blade left a light scratch. Raising his head, he saw Panther Lily, nastily bashed up but still up.

\- " YOU ? I thought you I took care of you ? "

\- " I am a member of Fairy Tail. And if there is one thing you mustn't do, is under-estimate us. "

And as to prove his statements, plants appeared, hindering the Strizer while Droy appeared at the end of one of the hallway, panting but conscious, Dmitri aiming his arm at him without saying anything, all those thing starting to get on his nerve. But Droy was not the only one to be still conscious.

 _ **COMBO SCRIPT: ACID SWORD !**_

A long and curved SWORD, with some greenish ACID on the edges was swung down on his cannon, the acid cutting it in two like a hot knife in some butter. He turned his head, but it was to be attacked once again.

 _ **SOLID SCRIPT : HAMMER !**_

A HAMMER appeared on the blue haired mage hand and she swung a right hook directly at Dmitri's face which, although his armor stayed, was floored, always shocked to have seen his cannon be destroyed so easily.

 _" What the hell is this acid ? "_

By getting up, he was harassed on all sides by Panther and Jet, the first one using his physical strength and his sword, the second his speed, to bother as much as possible the Strizer, whereas Droy assisted his friends, calling upon plants to hinder as much as possible Dmitri's movement. The latter struggled a lot, but between Jet, Panther and these plants, he couldn't get rid of all of this. Between 2 strike, he saw Gajeel, busy devouring 2 things which announced nothing good for him : a big SHADOW and CARBON. Once he ate the 2 words, Gajeel got up, his body, now made of steel, covered with shadows, a form combining the powers of his IRON SHADOW DRAGON MODE with the power of the steel: STEEL SHADOW DRAGON MODE. Meanwhile, Levy was also busy with writing a word which Dmitri knew too well.

 _ **SOLID SCRPT : ACID !**_

The ACID rushed at Dmitri, Panther and Jet throwing themselves on the side while the Strizer, completely entangled by plants couldn't and was struck quite hard by the wave of acid, eating away his armor which was not totally destroyed, but dangerously weakened, mainly one of his eyes, which had totally disappeared leaving his real left eye visible. He could saw Gajeel, hands joined over his head, some kind of long steel blade covered with shadows appearing over him. Dmitri would have loved to evade, but the other mages had others project for him. Panther threw himself on him and caught him from behind, blocking his arms against his side. Droy used every bit of magic he had to call upon the most sturdiest plants he could invoke and used them to totally wrap around the Strizer. The latter tried to struggle, but his attempt was vein.

 _ **FALCON HEAVENWARD !**_

Jet, calling to his last strength too, threw himself on Dmitri and throw a violent kick at the Strizer's face, more exactly on his temple, its weakened armor not absorbing all the damages. In doing so, the blow almost knocked Dmitri out. All those things together made sure that he just couldn't dodge what was coming next.

 _ **BLACK KARMA DEMON : STEEL SHADOW GOD SWORD !**_

The gigantic sword of steel covered with shadow came down on the Strizer, the power of the blow kept going forward, getting through the Strizer and cutting in half all the forge, the whole thing coming with an explosion which kept on for several hundred meters. When the smoke dissipated, Dmitri stood still, his armor totally destroyed, head covered in blood, his eyes dull behind his broken glasses before collapsing in the middle of the rubbles. By seeing their opponent collapsing, the mages all sighed with relief, dropping on the ground, all exhausted. But the sudden appearance of another person, appearing out of nowhere, standing beside Dmitri brought them out of their daze.

\- " Tsk tsk, really Dmitri, you have to learn to keep your feelings controlled, they tend to make you do nothing good. "

\- " Hey ! Who are you ? "

\- " You'll found out, one day. But for the moment, " the unknown lifted Dmitri, putting him on his shoulder, bending slightly over the weight of his companion. " I am going to return this idiot. See you later. "

And he disappeared as fast as he had appeared, melting in the shadows. The mages stayed without moving for a moment before they finally got over it all. Levy in Gajeel's arms the two smiling at each other before exchanging a small kiss, Panther helping Jet and Droy, they returned in town, to rest before returning to Magnolia to share the information with the others : another Strizer had just fallen.

 **Ok, done ! I hope you liked this chapter. I would like to let you know that I won't be home this week-end and I'm coming back on Monday, so I may have some delay for the One Piece next chapter, but it's not sure, it's just that if the next chapter is updated later than it normally is, it won't be surprising. See you next time !**

 **Next time : Mission report. A traveler is back. Love holyday ? Water and ice facing the ocean.**


	8. Chapter 8 : Newcomers and beach party

**Hey, guys. How are you ? So here we are for the eight chapter of this fic. I hope you'll like it. This will be a transition chapter, with the first appearance of another Strizer.**

 **And I am not Fairy Tail owner.**

 **Let's go !**

 **Chapter 8 : Newcomers and beach party**

\- " Well, what happened exactly ? "

The question of Makarov, still sitting on the bar of the guild, was more than legitimate. In front of him was the group which had fought in Tetsuga against the Strizer of metal, Dmitri. Meanwhile, the 5 members of the group had the opportunity to take care of themselves. Covered with bandages, casted arms, with crutches for some of them. When the others had seen them return wounded and covered in scratches and gashes, they had been more than surprised. Levy, Panther and Gajeel were supposed to be taking a few days of and if Jet and Droy had actually left for a mission, nobody would have imagined that they were going to eventually find one of Strizers. Sited in front of the master of Fairy Tail, the group began to explain what happened in Tetsuga, with the other mages listening to the explanation.

\- " At first, Droy and I had left for a missions to investigate about some strange machines noises which worried some villagers, not far from the forest where those guys appeared for the first time. " Began Jet before his partner take over the story.

\- " We followed some clues left behind by the guy behind those noises and we eventually arrived at Tetsuga where we found Levy, Panther and Gajeel, which we weren't expecting. And in the evening, we heard those same noises coming from a kind of forge outside of the city. "

\- " This is where we found the person behind all of this. The Strizer of the metal, a guy wearing a grey suit named Dmitri. " add Panther, holding his injured arm.

\- " The Strizer of metal ? That had to be a child's play for you, Gajeel. "

The remark of Gray was more than relevant, the talent of Gajeel to eat metal being a considerable advantage on a big metal bender. But the embarrassed expression of the iron dragon, who rubbed the back of his neck by looking away made them understand that it was in fact far from being so simple.

\- " Except that this guy was not only a man of metal. It also controlled machines and was a real walking arsenal. "

\- " He knew that Gajeel could eat metal and that it could become a real problem for him, so he used his weakness to put him offside. "

\- " He-Hey, Levy, they don't have to know all the details. " Gajeel cut Levy, not really wanting for the others to discover that he had been put offside so easily by this dude. It wouldn't be very good for his reputation. But regrettably, Levy didn't listen to him. In fact, she kept on with a small smile on her face.

\- " The Strizer stuck Gajeel on a sort of trolley which started riding on a rail and Gajeel, paralyzed by his motion sickness couldn't escape from it and was sent away. "

This revelation caused a general laughing fit in all the guild, which imagined without any problem what it could have looked like, making them laugh even more. Gajeel felt the pressure rising inside of him, threatening to explode at any time, whereas Levy from her part kept on with the story.

\- " Then, we had to use some trickery to save Gajeel before it was too late. "

\- " What do you mean by that ? " cut Mirajane, behind the bar as always, wiping a glass while listening to the story.

\- " The trolley on which Gajeel was strapped was heading for a furnace which would have, according to the Strizer, been able to melt Gajeel's metal like butter. We had to intercept him before he reached it. " Explained Panther before taking a breath and resuming. " I stayed behind to hold our opponent back while the others ran to fetch Gajeel. But I couldn't hold for a very long time, he quickly put me out of the fight. "

\- " From our part, we split up to be able to find Gajeel more quickly. Jet and I found ourselves to be the first ones facing him and we tried to win as much time as possible because Levy had just reached the furnace. " kept on Droy, before being interrupted by Wendy, who was listening to them while taking care of the wounded mages.

\- " And after that ? Gajeel came back ? " She Asked, captivated by the story.

\- " Not exactly. " resumed Levy. " When I destroyed the rail on which the car was, Gajeel had not reached the furnace yet. I made sure that Gajeel could never falls in the furnace and I left to help Jet and Droy. It's only a little later, when I was the only one still able to fight that Gajeel arrived. "

\- " We then began to fight seriously, but this chap was strong as hell. He gave me a good run for my money. And little by little, he began to get the upper hand, mainly thanks to the fact that he was more than iron. In the end, we had to work together, all 5 of us to stop him. Especially after he brought out his armor. "

\- " Wait, did I heard that right ? Gajeel teamed up without flinching with Jet and Droy ? Where is the world going. " Wondered Cana, like always a barrel of alcohol in her hands.

While Gajeel, held back by Levy, tried to punch Cana, Makarov shook his head, eyes close before raising his head towards his 'children'.

\- " The way you did it doesn't matter. In the end, we were able to get rid of another one of these Strizers. Rest. We do not know when they will launch their next move. "

Once the report ended, everybody returned to his activities. Levy got to see Lucy, who still had some wounds because of her fight against Xun, the group of Tetsuga having learn about Rufus and Orga's aggression and especially the fight against the Strizer of the sun by returning at the guild, whereas Gajeel got up to go to the sick bay to visit Rogue, his friend and rival, who was still in a coma. By entering the room, his face twisted slightly. To see his friend of Sabertooth laying on a bed, covered with bandage and always unconscious after several days, it was particularly hard to see. He was not alone in the room however. Minerva was still there, sitting at the edge of the bed, waiting for the awakening of the shadow dragon. She spent most of her time here, except to eat and also when she is dragged outside by the girls to force her to have a change of air.

\- " How did he end up in this state ? "

Gajeel had asked the question without raising his head, addressing Minerva who answered without raising her eyes either.

\- " Simply put, he wanted to be a hero. By putting himself between us and the enemy. "

Gajeel slightly chuckled, as to say ' that looks like him to do that ', before going towards the exit. Arrived at the door, he stopped, giving a look at Minerva over his shoulder.

\- " He'll wake up. He is a tough, there's no doubt about it. Keep an eye on him and when he'll wake up, give me a word, ok ? "

After Minerva agreed with a nod, a light smile on her lips after hearing the encouragement from Gajeel, which was a rare occurrence, the dragon of iron got out of the room, joining Levy and the others in the hall of the guild. Everybody had resumed their usual activities, although disrupted the attacks of the Strizer which seemed more and more unpredictable. However, a person in the room seemed in full reflection. It was Juvia who for once seemed to be think about something else than Gray, which worried her friends who sat with her. Nobody dared to interrupt her until Erza decides to break the ice.

\- " Uh, Juvia. Are you worried about something ? "

The water mage did not answer immediately, acting like she didn't heard the question. Erza got ready to repeat it when Juvia answered by another question, without looking at her companions.

\- " Why Juvia has the impression that Levy and Gajeel are closer than before ? "

The other girls, namely Erza, Wendy, Lucy and Cana, were surprised by the remark of Juvia, then they followed her gaze to see that she had her eyes aimed at Levy who had been joined by Gajeel. The dragon sat next to the small woman before pulling her towards him, making her sit down on his laps and Levy didn't seem to worry about it, keeping on reading but with a light smile on her lips nevertheless.

\- " It is true that they seem to be closer than ever since their return from Tetsuga. " Commented Lucy, sipping on her vanilla milkshake.

\- " It is not surprising. It is the kind of hardship that bring people closer. " Added Wendy innocently, a concept Cana apparently didn't know, already twisting what the young girl had just said.

\- " How you can know that ? *Gasp* Something happened during your last mission with Romeo ? I WANNA KNOW EVERYTHING ! "

\- " N-No, it is n-nothing like that. Really. " Answered the young mage, her shyness showing once again as her face turned cherry-red. But her embarrassment was cut short when Erza returned to the main subject of the discussion.

\- " Wendy is not wrong. Look at Minerva and Rogue. Before, they were shyer than Alzack and Bisca and now, Minerva swore to tell how she feels to Rogue when he'll wake up. "

\- " Besides, it was either after a stay in a spa or during holidays. Some would think that holidays bring people closer. "

Suddenly, a crackle was heard. The 4 girls turned their head to the source of the noise and what they saw really frightened them. Juvia, pupils over dilatated, had her nails sinking more and more into the massive wood of the table, whereas they could almost see her brain working at top speed, analyzing the situation.

\- " Holidays … Move people closer… The way she feels … "

\- " Uh, Juvia … Are you feeling good ? "

All of a sudden, the water mage got up without warning, fixing a right(straight) point in front of her.

\- " Juvia has something to do ! "

With this, she rushed far from the table and went to search on a board on which was posted many advertisements and announcements before going to throw herself almost literally on Gray. After that, following a few minutes of discussions, or rather monologue on behalf of Juvia, because she didn't let the ice mage the time to say anything. And in the millisecond after he had accepted what Juvia had proposed to him, he was literally towed outside of the guild by Juvia, under the dumbfounded look of the other mages, in particular the 4 friends of the blunette, always sitting at the table. Once the shock past, Levy joins them, still surprised by what had just taken place.

\- " Is it a good idea to let them go, uh, where they want to go ? "

\- " Why do you ask this question, suddenly ? " Asked Erza, not understanding(including) why witch of the words seemed so worried.

\- " Well, with Gajeel, we thought about what happened to Tetsuga. And here's what we are thinking : what was the probability that the Strizer we met could end in the city where I and Gajeel were when he was followed by Jet and Droy ? According to us, this Strizers has to know us enough to be able to predict where they will have the opportunity to find us. And thus … "

\- " And thus you think that one of them already waits for Gray and Juvia where they are going ? " With this new possibility, uneasiness reach its peak for the girls. " *sigh* I hope that you are wrong. "

\- " That's the problem with Levy: she is never wrong. " With this last sentence, pronounced by Gajeel who had just joined Levy, an arm wrapped around her waist, a chill ran down the spine of the people sitting at the table. They all hoped that whatever happens, Juvia and Gray will be safe.

Suddenly, the doors opened once again, but if most of the people were expecting for it to be Gray, who would try to flee Juvia, it was instead two mages whom nobody expected to see.

\- "Luxus ?!" Exclaimed Erza, surprised when she saw the grandson of the master coming back so early from a mission which would have taken much more time than that, having left the city early in the morning the day after the party at the guild for the commemoration of the war against Alvarez.

\- "Dad ?!" Exclaimed Cana almost at the same time, surprised seeing Gildarts returning. "But what are you two doing here ?"

Indeed, the most powerful mage of Fairy Tail was standing in the door frame, standing right beside Makarov grandson. The prosthesis wearing mage had left early in the morning the day after the anniversary of the victory on Alvarez, basically at the same time as Luxus, to free the kingdom of some remaining dark guild while Luxus had left at the same moment alone for a S-rank quest to free a region of the kingdom which was still undergoing attacks from a remaining battalion of Arbaless. In other words, nobody expected to see them returning so early, and especially together.

\- "We crossed on the way back, then we said to ourselves, why not to get here together."

However, the looks on the other mages faces as well as the presence of the members of the other guilds instigated their curiosities as well as their concerns.

\- "What's with those gloomy faces? Something happened ?" Gildarts question brought down a heavy silence on the hall of the guild which was ended only after some long seconds by Makarov.

\- "It turns out that we are actually facing a threat of a new kind." The faces of Gildarts and Luxus tightened, clearly not liking what the old man was just saying. Another reason to worry for the guild. "A threat which is a lot more difficult to fight than we thought. A dozen of us have already been hurt, one of them still unconscious."

This new information shook the 2 newcomers to their very core, who looked through the hall to try to find who it was, Luxus thinking mostly about a barmaid, while Gildarts was quickly relieved to see that Cana was fine.

\- "And who is it exactly ?" Asked Luxus.

\- "Rogue Cheney."

That name shocked Luxus. Every Dragon Slayer, no matter their generation, were extremely powerful and Rogue was no exception. However, his thoughts were stopped when his eyes reached the one and only fire breathing mage of the guild. The latter was far too serious given the situation, so much that the two mages couldn't help but feel that something was really wrong. They noticed however that something was missing and it's Gildarts who asked the question they both had in mind.

\- "Where is Happy ?"

By seeing the looks of Natsu and almost all the fairies turning away, they understood that something bad happened to the Exceed. It's Erza who took care of explaining what happened to him.

\- "Happy disappeared. It seems like he ran away the day after the fight against the first member of this new group of enemy."

The 2 mages were bewildered by this information, to the point that Gildarts had to sit down, completely in shock. Laxus remained standing, although shaken, before asking another question to his grandfather.

\- "What do we know about this group? Is it a dark guild ?"

\- "No. In fact, they are not even of our world." Gildarts and Laxus opened wide eyes in surprise. "They are 12 and all very powerful. It seems like they came to test us. Although we have absolutely no idea why. But they are ready to do anything apparently."

\- "I see. In this case, I am going to stay here. I had planned to leave for another mission, but it would be criminal to let you all handle this without one of your most powerful mage, isn't it ?" Luxus decided, for the biggest enjoyment of the mages, in particular the Raijinshu but also Mirajane, who locked her gaze with Luxus for a few second, a small happy smile appearing on their faces.

\- "As for me, I am going to leave to explore the kingdom. They had to hide somewhere. So I am going to discover where and I will tell you if I learn anything interesting."

\- "Very well, Gildarts. Then takes this." said Makarov by handing a communication lachryma at Gildarts. "With that, you can keep us informed about your whereabout."

\- "Very well, I will. Oh, Natsu." The young man turned his head to look at his idol, wondering what he wanted from him. "If I find anything about Happy, You'll be the first to know."

\- "Thank you, Gildarts."

\- "Ok then. Take care and beat their asses !"

/- Aonami, the next day -/

Gray had no idea what he was doing here. When Juvia had jumped on him at the guild, he had been taken by surprise, but when she began speaking about taking some holidays, he had lost his capacity to form coherent thoughts and was dragged into those totally improvised holidays at the beach. The problem isn't that Gray doesn't love Juvia : it was quite the opposite to be honest. It's just that he had a really hard time in finding how he could exteriorize his feelings. He had promised to pay more attention to the feelings of his partner a few years back, but he had no experience on this subject and didn't know how to confess his feelings in due form, which is the reason why he had still said nothing. And so he was there, Juvia clinging to his arm, in front of one of the most beautiful beach of the kingdom, which was covered with a lot of people, since it was the first day of a festival, taking place on the beach as well as the town.

\- " Ah, Gray-sama. This place is wonderful, isn't it ? Did Juvia choose a place that pleases you? "

\- " Juvia, I didn't even have the opportunity to give my agreement about it. You dragged me here against my will. Besides, with what is taking place at the moment, taking holidays is the least of my concerns."

These remarks hurt Juvia, who had frozen, eyes filling with big tears. Gray clenched his teeth. He hate seeing her crying, or seeing her sad for all that matter. Especially since he knew that the water mage waterworks were more than extreme. More than once, the guild had been half flooded because of her and he didn't really want for this city to experiences the same thing, moreover during a festival. For these 2 reasons, he decided to calm her.

\- " Well, I imagine that thinking about something else than our current problems isn't that bad. And since we are already here, we might as well make the most out of it. Just a thing, though. Stop with the sama, please. " Tried Gray to calm Juvia, rubbing the back of his head while Juvia agreed, nodding as the sadness was replace by joy in an instant, gripping his arm once again, before heading towards the festival.

The seafoam festival is one of the biggest celebration of the region, known all over the kingdom. A festival which celebrated the sea, to thank her for offering so much to the kingdom, but especially to this city since all of its activities depended on it for more than 10 generations, whether it is fishers, hotels managers and other campsites. Juvia on her part, was like she ended in paradise. At least, it is what her wide smile and shining eyes could make people believe. Dressed in a blue bikini with waves design and a white sarong tied around her waist, she looked at her surroundings, admiring the paradisiac landscape as well as the people who went and came. But she spent most of her time looking at Gray, who wore just a dark blue bermuda shorts and sunglasses, while being totally stuck on his right arm, squeezing him so hardly as it was almost a miracle that his blood still ran in it. They walked on the beach, taking advantage of the weather, more than clement before stopping in front of a stand to satisfy their hunger, since it became more and more intense since they arrived. The stand was kept by a young woman, as tall as Juvia, with long black hair with blue highlight which seemed to wave in the sun, combed in 2 braids on each sides of her head. Glittering sapphires eyes and a pale round face which was radiating with life. She was dressed like a student, sort of, with a navy blue blouse with white lines on the sleeves and collar and a kind of red scarf around her neck. Because of the heat, she had knotted her shirt in a way to make her belly show. She also carried a matched pleated skirt reaching the middle of her thigh and ballerinas of the same color. She would have been cute, if she did not have her eyes soaked with sheer madness, which put the 2 mages ill-at-ease.

\- "Hello!" The young woman had shouted, almost making the passers-by deaf, while she talked to both mages. "My name is Mizuki and welcome in the 'Sea for yourself', the stand which serves the best fish dishes and seafoods of all the festival ! Can I help you ? Oh but wait, if you are here, it's probably to eat since I'm a food stand, so in this case … WELCOME ! What I can serve you ?"

The answer took a long time coming out, given that Gray wasn't able to speak, always trying to understand what was the problem of this girl who seemed to be suffering mental disorder and whose face was now so close to his face that he could see his own reflection in her eyes, the whole thing happening just in front of Juvia, who was glaring at her, muttering ' Love Rival! ' by seeing this girl so close to her Gray-sama.

\- " Uh, well … Do you have anything interesting ? " Asked Gray, trying not to be impolite in spite of its growing desire to run far away from this madwoman, who would make Juvia's stalking look like a sane behavior.

\- " Everything is interesting here. " began Mizuki always smiling to them, before correcting herself. " Well, if you like seafoods and fish, but you wouldn't be here if that was not the case. I thus recommend you these fish stick. They are delicious, but keep an eye on the fish bones, it is possible that there are some in there. I'm not that good with a knife when I'm in the kitchen. " While the young woman rubbed the back of her head sheepishly but still grinning like a madmen, Gray and Juvia glanced behind her and saw what could be described as a cook's nightmare. Fishes had been ripped, as if they had been cut with a chain saw. Water was dripping from everywhere and they even was some birds eating what was left of the fish. Might as well say that the hunger of the 2 mages disappeared as quickly as it arrived, replaced little by little by nausea. While Gray got ready to tell the young woman about how she clearly didn't know how to cook, a voice echoed from the loud speakers all across the beach.

\- " Watch out. Last reminder. The contestants for the surfing competition are asked to come register before the competition start. "

\- " AH ! I HAD FORGOTTEN THAT ! SORRY, BUT I HAVE TO GO ! Goodbye ! "

With this, she left her stand, rushing to the officials of the competition, abandoning the 2 mages who were left alone, speechless for a moment before their hunger came once again, making them go look for food once again.

/- End of the afternoon -/

Gray and Juvia, walking on the beach, with real fish sticks in their hands, were having a good time together, laughing and talking about everything and anything, forgetting everything about their actual problems. By approaching the crowd gathered at the edge of the ocean, they saw a silhouette up on a surfboard, chaining figures on several meters waves with an outstanding ease, its dark hair fluttering according to the wind and the figures. When its session ended, she joined the beach and the 2 mages, still impressed by what they had just seen, were in shock to see that it was Mizuki, the same madwoman who had almost poisoned them earlier during the day.

\- "Oh. It's you two."

Mizuki approached them, her surfing suit open and folded up around her waist, showing her navy blue bikini top. Where Juvia looked at the surfer suspiciously, Gray was more surprised by the brutal change of attitude of the young woman. By seeing the unsympathetic look of Gray, Mizuki laughed lightly, understanding what put him in this state.

\- "I imagine that after what you saw at my stand, you can't think it's possible for me to be something else than a madwoman. I understands you, but it's the ocean, or even the water more generally, which calms me. I feel good there."

Her explanation was however cut short, because a horrified shriek was heard all over the beach, coming from Mizuki's stand. A man with neck long brown hair, wearing glasses with square frames, with a Hawaiian shirt with green designs, a white pair of shorts and flip-flops was standing in front of the stand, his eyes riveted on the massacre which had taken place in the kitchen of the stand.

\- "You have a problem with my stand, sir?" asked Mizuki, her surfboard under her arm, the other hand put on her hip.

\- "If I have a problem with your stand ? Are you fucking kidding me !?" The man turned his green eyes full of anger towards the young woman, in front of the 2 mages who did not know what was going on anymore. "A decent chef should never …" By seeing who he was talking to, he stopped, shocked, before starting up again with a renewed vigor. "Mizuki ? Everything make sense now."

\- "Vincenzo, calm down, would you ? You know well that I'm not good in the kitchen."

The explanation of Mizuki didn't seem to be enough for him, seeing that he head straight at the young woman before stopping right in front of her, pulling her cheeks apart.

\- "It's like Lucy with Happy. " commented Juvia, who was looking at the scene with Gray without understanding anything that was happening, even if Gray was thinking about something.

\- " In this case, you should have asked me to do it ! Such a waste of food, it's criminal ! " This is when Vincenzo noticed the 2 mages who were looking at them for a few minutes now. " Mizuki, don't tell me that you spent the day with Fairy Tail mages without realizing it ? "

\- "Wait, they are ?"

\- "They have the mark of the guild on them." Said Vincenzo, looking at Mizuki but pointing at the crest on Gray's torso and Juvia's thigh. Seeing them, Mizuki just answered with a "Oooooh.", making Vincenzo sighed.

\- " Wait a little. Vincenzo, that name rings a bell. " admitted Gray, suddenly on his guard.

\- " I imagine that several of your friends told you about my restaurant. By the way, how is the _signora_ Kagura doing ? "

By hearing Vincenzo talk about a restaurant and Kagura, Juvia and Gray realized that this guy was the Strizer of the forest, the first Strizer who had faced Natsu, Sting, Kagura and Lyon at Karista.

\- " But then, Mizuki … "

\- " Is a colleague of mine. " Completed Vincenzo, cutting Juvia's sentence. " Mizuki Takeda, Strizer of the ocean. "

\- " Yep. And since the beach is going to be closed to be ready for tomorrow, we have a perfect battlefield at our disposal. "

 _ **SHITABA !**_

Mizuki swept the air with her arm in the direction of the 2 mages, throwing waves bigger and bigger, the most impressive being more than 2 meters, pushing away the 2 and sending them farther on the beach.

\- "She has the same powers as Juvia ?!" Exclaimed the water mage, whereas she and Gray got up, facing Mizuki who was covered with a blue aura, spheres of water swirling around her.

\- "Not exactly. Well, since I we can't help our friend to fight and since I've already lost mine, I'm going to go back to the others. Goodbye."

\- "Wait !" Vincenzo stopped and, without turning around, looked at Gray who had just questioned him. "Join them where ? You have a HQ or something like that ?"

\- "Naturally. We need a place where to rest and to plan our missions."

With this, Vincenzo walked away from the beach whereas Gray thought about what the Strizer had just said.

 _"To plan their missions ? Why do I feel like he wasn't just speaking about us. They have other objectives ? But which one ?"_

\- "Well, now that we are alone, we can start it for good." Threw Mizuki

\- "Yeah, let's go. Juvia is going to show you who is the real water queen." Countered Juvia, more motivated than never.

\- "What did I do to end up in this ?" Gray sighed.

 **And this chapter come to an end. I hope you liked it. I'll be back in about 2 weeks for the next one. Goodbye!**

 **Next time: Rivalry between water maidens ! Ocean's animals and problematic regeneration. The ocean's warrior.**


	9. Chapter 9 : The ocean's warrior

**Hello everybody ! We are once again gathered for a new chapter, the 9th of this Fairy Tail fic. I hope that it will please you as usual. Do not hesitate to leave a review if you liked it or if you have any RELEVANT remarks (I insist on this point) concerning the fic in a general way.**

 **I am still not the owner of Fairy Tail, and to be honest, I don't want to. And I have not One Piece owner either, certain shall understand why by reading this chapter.**

 **Let's not waste any more time, let's go!**

 **Chapter 9: The ocean's warrior.**

The light marine breeze, the iodized air, the waves coming to caress the sand before retracting towards the sea, the sun disappearing behind the hills next to the beach, all the conditions were gathered to make of this beach a perfectly romantic place. Except for one small detail. The atmosphere. The air was heavy and far from being convenient to a romantic stroll bare foot in the sand. It was due to the 3 people who were presently the only ones on the beach. Juvia, still wearing her bikini and sarong, standing right next to Gray, the 2 of them wearing dark expression, their gaze locked on the young surfer standing in front of them. Mizuki, unlike the 2 others, was all smiles, still with her surfing suit folded up on her waist and bubbles made of water orbiting around her, like the moon around the Earth. The Strizer of the ocean thus faced the mages of Fairy Tail, the 2 parties gauging their opponent, wondering if they had to launch the first offensive or wait for the other one to do it. Except that patience was not one of Mizuki's qualities, who quickly pouted by seeing her opponents staying on their side, looking at her warily.

\- " Hey, It's not funny if you just stand there waiting for something to happen. I though you would rush any without thinking to much about it. Well, too bad. I guess that it means that I am going to have to wake you up. And for that, nothing better that a cold shower. "

 _ **MIZU NO HARETSU (water burst)!**_

The bubbles of water which were hovering around Mizuki gathered in front of her and rushed out like a torrent on the 2 mages who jumped to the sides to evade the attack which went to reduce to nothing but rubbles several stands situated behind them, some rubbles being a head sign saying 'Sea for yourself', which stopped the Strizer dead in her track.

\- " NO ! My stand ! " She cried, tears pouring down her face, holding her head in her hands, forgetting for a moment the fight, which was a godsend opportunity for the mages.

Gray took advantage of this moment to counter-attack, while staying on his guard since there was no way to tell what the young woman was really capable of. He thus decided to try something basic to begin with.

 _ **ICE MAKE: LANCE !**_

Multiple lances made of ice sprang out of a magic circle appearing just in front of Gray, heading straight to the Strizer. The latter heard the sound of the ice get closer and counter-attacked herself, but in a quite original way.

 _ **CHOSEKI SHIRUDO (tidal shield)!**_

She invoked a big wave, more or less motionless, the strength of its current breaking the spears but it's what she did with this wave which took Gray by surprise. She used her powers to walk on the water and surf without surfboard on the wave, using it to rushed at Gray, her right hand touching the water.

 _ **SUISEI YARI ( aqueous spear )!**_

She brought her hand out of the water suddenly, throwing a spear made of water at Gray, but before it could reach her target, she was intercepted by a hand made by water coming from the wave. Mizuki did not understand what this was, but it was not the case for Gray, who had a half-smile on his face. Mizuki finally understood when she felt a strange presence in the water and she saw what looked like Juvia's face on the surface of the wave which then threw itself on her, the 2 women ending in some kind of chase, Mizuki howling like a child who had just seen a ghost, Gray looking at the display with a sweat drop on the side of his head.

\- " AAAAAAAHHH ! HELP ! A GHOST I CHASING ME! " cried the Strizer before stopping all of a sudden, laughing out loud. " I'm joking ! You think that someone made of water as a chance against me ?! "

With this, she plunged her hand in Juvia's aqueous body which was mixed with the wave and she did something which surprised both mages. Just like during her last offensive, Mizuki get her hand out of the water and instead of a simple spray of water, it was Juvia who was extirpated from the water and was thrown without further ado on Gray, whose reflexes were good enough to catch his partner, much to the joy of the water mage, but neither of them had time to evade what followed.

 _ **KAIYO BAKUDAN ( oceanic bomb )!**_

Gathering all the water of the wave which had hardly moved since the beginning, she created a gigantic sphere of water she then threw on 2 mages, who weren't able to evade and were struck quite hard by the mass of water which created a wide crater in the middle of the beach, water spattering everywhere, creating small puddles in the middle of the stand rubbles, destroyed by the attacks. Mizuki landed a few steps away from the crater, hands on her hips.

\- " Already done ? I'm disappointed, I expected better. "

 _ **WATER SLICER !**_

Without understanding, Mizuki was struck violently on her right side by a blade of water which cut him the body profoundly. Mizuki turned her head and saw Juvia, re-forming from a puddle, the position of her body indicating clearly that she had just attacked her. Deciding not to let Mizuki getting the time to get over the commotion, Gray appears out of nowhere, ready to strike.

 _ **ICE MAKE: SAUCER !**_

A saucer made of ice with sharp edges was thrown at the Strizer, which was knocked quite hard by the sculpture, leaving a clear imprint on her body, throwing her far off, straight ahead in the ocean. Gray and Juvia got back side by side facing the ocean, more exactly the place where Mizuki had landed after being ejected by Gray's attack.

\- " Already done ? I'm disappointed, I expected better. " Taunted Gray, sending back to Mizuki her own provocation, a light winner smirk gracing his lips.

\- " We ended that in no time. Gray-sama, we are so powerful together. Our love makes us invincible." added Juvia, turning to Gray to look at him in the eyes, the latter turning to her, reddening slightly because of these words.

\- " Juvia, calm down. And I already told you that I didn't want you to call me Gray-sama. Just Gray, please. "

\- " Ah! Sorry! Juvia won't forget any more, Gray-sa.. hem, Gray. "

\- " You 2 are so Kawaii ! "

The mages turned to the person who had just talked, finding themselves facing Mizuki, who stood on the surface of the water. But what left our two young lovebirds speechless was that the Strizer had not even the slightest scratch on her body. Even her deepest wounds had totally closed, now almost invisible.

\- " I imagine that you are surprised. It's understandable, but you must know that the ocean, the sea and all their variants, always had curative properties. Although in my case, I pushed it up to pure and simple regeneration. Simply said, as long as I'll be in contact with the ocean, I'll be benefiting a constant regeneration. "

 _ **UMI NO YOSAI (fortress of the sea)!**_

The ocean became alive all of a sudden, stirring as if the water had reach his boiling point while it began to take shape, pillars and walls of many sizes growing out of the water, to build some kind of castle made completely of crystalline water, Mizuki standing up on some kind of tower. Furthermore, many silhouettes swam around the castle and even in its walls.

\- " This is my sanctuary of the sea. Good luck ! You'll need it. "

\- " If you believe that a castle shaped bubble is going to frighten us, you are in for a big surprise. "

 _ **ICE MAKE: ICEBERG !**_

Gray put his hands on the surface of the water, which quickly froze, the wave of frost quickly going to the fortress of water but strangely, it did not seem to worry the young ocean woman even a bit. She waved and the ocean began stirring. Her castle moved several meters away and the water formed a whirlpool which raised itself against the frost, which found itself trapped in an infinite loop, its ice being broken by the waves, which froze, only to be to break once again by other waves. Understanding that he couldn't do it like that, Gray took his hands out of the water, whereas Mizuki put hers on the castle.

 _ **UMI NO HOGEKI (barrage fire of the sea)!**_

Many cannon made of water formed on the surface of the castle and began firing on the mages who had to put themselves under cover, the aquatic deluge of missiles more important than what they thought it would be. Gray and Juvia parted, splitting in opposite directions and, taking advantage of the dead angle of the artillery, threw themselves on the castle, but everything did not go according to the plan.

 _ **KAIGARA SHURIKEN (seashells shuriken)!**_

Shells arose suddenly from the ocean like an antiaircraft guns and struck the mages, who were slashed by their sharp edges. But only Gray had to undergo this, because Mizuki seemed a little too much concentrated on the ice mage and Juvia used her water body to let the shells go right through her, giving her the opportunity to counter-attack.

 _ **WATER NEBULA !**_

Two wide columns of water formed, ready to fall down on Mizuki when suddenly …

 _ **KUJIRA NO FUKU (breath of the whale)!**_

A whale come out of the water facing the sky, its vent turned towards Juvia. The gigantic marine mammal then blew by its vent, the breath sending Juvia back to the beach, quickly joined by Gray, who had to retreat because of the seashells.

\- "What is this shit ? I thought that you controlled the ocean ?"

\- " I do. And have you already seen an ocean without any living being in it ? We all have an animal affinity. For me, it's the ocean and everything that lives inside. For Vincenzo for example, it is the forest, and thus its main inhabitants, insects. "

This revelation did not really meant good thing for them, but Gray was especially focused on finding a way to counter this fortress which was of use by Mizuki as a way to protect herself and also to cure her wounds immediately. They had to find a solution about it.

 _" If only I had enough time to do something. If I had enough time, I could try this again. "_ Gray wondered. _" But what could I use for that. Wait, I know! Well I hate lying to her but … "_

\- " Hey, Juvia! "

\- " What, do you have a plan? " she asked, busy dodging the swordfish sent by Mizuki as if they were darts.

\- " Yeah, listen to that. "

Juvia gave Gray all of her attention, Mizuki gazing at them, trying to understand what was happening.

\- " After she finished her surfing contest, she tried to hit on me. " he said before rushing to hide behind some rock on the side

\- " Hey! " Mizuki shouted. " I've never said or done anything like that. What's with this plan ? Lying to her ? What is that going to do, baka ? "

She had hardly finished her sentence that the sky was suddenly filled with dark clouds, a heavy rain suddenly falling down on the beach while the Strizer could see people tanning at the edge of a swimming pool at an hotel just 300 meters away. It's at this moment that she felt it. Something almost malefic coming from the beach. Slowly turning her head, already completely drenched, she was faced with something who scared the life out of her.

In front of her, half hidden by the rain, stood Juvia, her gaze dark and almost crazed out, pupils as small as needles head, who was staring at her, an aura of darkness around her, as if she was a devil send to Earth to punish the human race, pouring all at once all of her hatred on Mizuki, who did not understand why the water mage was so angry. She got her answer a few seconds later, when a shrill roar suppressed all the other noises.

\- "LOVE RIVAL ! "

 _ **SIERRA!**_

Her whole body became water and she rushed at Mizuki, always shook by all that hatred heading her way.

 _" I know that she the jealous kind, but is it normal for her to be THAT jealous ? "_

Mizuki took a stand to defend herself, recovering from the shock initiated by Juvia's hatred but the speed of the latter took her by surprise too and she was struck quite hard by a wave who had the strength of a truck, but the most surprising was the temperature of the water, which was boiling. The sudden contact with a water so hot caused a thermal shock which would have been fatal if Mizuki had no oceanic powers, the Strizer still standing on her castle as Juvia kept up the offensive, coming back for the second round.

 _ **KUJIRA KEIMUSHO (whale prison)!**_

A gigantic whale, called by Mizuki, appears from the depths of the ocean and swallowed Juvia, finding herself locked inside the animal. Or at least it's what the brunette thought.

 _ **SIERRA JIGSAW!**_

The whale was suddenly pierced, the body of Juvia now shaped like a big cutting spiral that she had used to go out of the whale without any trouble. The mage kept on without stopping, her anger still clearly visible and locked on the Strizer, which had no choice but to give up her water tower, which collapsed since she couldn't keep it standing up, surfing on the surface of the ocean, trying to avoid the blunette fury, the 2 women exchanging blow for blow without stopping. After a little while, Juvia and Mizuki stopped, facing each other, standing up in the middle of the bay, panting but globally unscathed because Juvia was untouchable when in her liquid form and Mizuki having been healed thanks to the ocean.

\- " You needs to calm down, buddy. ", began Mizuki, pointing a finger at Juvia. " I have never made a move on anyone, and to be honest, I already have somebody in my heart. "

\- " Juvia knows that well. " This confession took Mizuki by surprise, whose eyes opened wide. " Juvia knew that it was only a lie, but I understood why Gray said it. Juvia played along, that's all. "

\- " That is still rather stupid. Especially if the objective was to make me go back to the beach, you are far from having reached this goal. " when Mizuki finished, a derisive smile appeared on Juvia's face.

\- " But that's already the case. You really think you are still on the ocean ? "

This question made Mizuki's brain stall, not understanding, seeing no logic behind those words. Her brain then reached full speed once again when when she noticed something strange with Juvia. Her feet had disappeared. Or rather, they were somewhere else. Water tentacles appeared from the ocean, just below Mizuki, and wrapped themselves around the Strizer, blocking her hands. By looking at it closely, the feet of Juvia had not disappeared, but they had been changed in water and diluted in the ocean, to create some kind of carpet controlled by Juvia under the young brunette, because it was about a fragment of her body, and Mizuki couldn't control it as long as her hands weren't in contact with it, which was the job of those tentacles. While Mizuki struggled, the water limbs re-forming as soon as she managed to destroy them, Juvia began to gather her magic.

 _ **WATER SURGING SPEAR !**_

An enormous spear, made of swirling water, like a drill, appeared in front of Juvia, who then sent it to crash into Mizuki, the power of the spear taking the Strizer and sent her back to the beach, digging a deep furrow in the sand all over the beach. Suddenly stopped by a wall of rock delimiting the edge of the beach, Mizuki got up, staggering, the front of her body covered with gashes and scratches, whereas Juvia got back to the beach, standing at the other end of the furrow, facing the Strizer, who began laughing slowly by holding out a hand towards the ocean.

\- " It seems you have forgotten that I do not need to be directly in contact with the ocean to heal myself, I just have to make it come to me. "

And this is when sea water stretched out through the beach, like two hands trying to reach each other, finally touching Mizuki's hand, the water wrapping her wound to heal them.

 _ **DEVIL'S ICE FLOE !**_

Without a warning, the arm of water connecting Mizuki to the ocean froze, covering in the process the Strizer with ice. Wide eyed and bewildered, she perceived Gray getting closer to Juvia, before stopping by her side, a big black mark on his right side, from his hand up to his right eye.

\- " All this scheme just to freeze me ? And partially ? To be completely honest with you, you wasted your time. " Sighed Mizuki before breaking the ice encasing her without breaking a sweat.

Bad plan.

As soon as the ice broke, it opened once again and at the same time all the wounds she had on her body, the pain tearing away from her a guttural roar while she was experimenting one of the most stinging pain she ever suffered in her life, although she contained it quite quickly and returned her attention to the mages.

\- "Not exactly. " Countered Gray, arms crossed, before pointing at the ocean over his shoulder. " Did you really looked at it ? "

Mizuki, even before looking, felt that there was something wrong wasn't right, or at least not anymore. Added to the fact that Gray seemed slightly out of breath, it augured nothing good for her. When her eyes finally settled on her precious ocean, she almost got a seizure right there. For what looked like kilometers around, the ocean had been completely frozen. And the ice sheet was so thick that couldn't call it anymore, either for heling herself or to call upon her friends from the sea. Lowering her head slightly, her eyes hidden behind her fringe, whereas her global composure seemed to become disturbingly neutral.

\- " If I needed Juvia to make a diversion, it was because I needed time to gather the magic required to do that. Freezing the ocean that much asks for quite a lot of energy. I even had to draw from my Ice Devil Slayer's powers. " He Explained, gesturing to the black marks inherited from his father which were disappearing little by little from his right arm.

\- " But now, you lost the source of your powers. " Juvia kept on " It would be better for you to give up. "

Hearing the word 'to give up' made Mizuki's muscles twitch, her eyes still shadowed by her hair.

\- "Give up ?" mumbled Mizuki before returning to a normal volume. " In my country, we have a culture based on honor. For us, it is better to die than to live in dishonor. And in wartime, it is translated by a will to be ready to die for our country. In other words … " She finally raised her head, and Juvia and Gray did a double take. They needed some time to realize that the Mizuki who was standing in front of them was the same and not some kind of malefic twin. Mizuki's gaze, and her form in general, had completely changed. She had lost that look who was once filled with sheer madness, now replace by the determination and strength of the real warrior. " You think that freezing the ocean is going to be enough to stop me? I am not just that the ocean. I am the water. "

In the hands of Mizuki, which hung limply on her side, two big water droplets formed while she raised her arms until she had them completely to the horizontal.

 _ **UCHIMIZU !**_

Mizuki waved her arms toward the 2 mages, the drops of water crossing the beach in a blink of an eye before colliding with Juvia and Gray, in the stomach for the young woman and in the rib cage for the young man, both breaking over the power of the impact, getting back several steps, breathlessly.

\- "I don't need things like lake, sea or river to fight. I have more than enough water in the air surrounding us for that. And then, I can always create it myself. Then don't go believing that it's finished because you have frozen an ocean, which is impressive all the same, I have to give you that."

Gray grinded his teeth and rushed at Mizuki, followed closely by Juvia, the latter armed with her _**Water Slicer**_ and Gray having created a long sword of ice. During their approach, Mizuki repositioned herself and when Gray and Juvia were less than two meters away from her, she hit the air in front of her with her fist.

 _ **KARAKUSAGAWARA SEIKEN !**_

The 2 mages hit the brakes, not understanding what she had just done. But they noticed sorts of undulations in the air which propagated around her fist and when these waves reached them, they were struck by a powerful shock wave which pushed them away, dealing a lot of damages at the same time.

\- " Gah. What the fuck happened ? " Wondered Gray, getting up with difficulty, as well as Juvia, who was in no better shaped despite her body made of water.

\- " I used the humidity of the air to create a shock wave which, as you were able to notice it, made quite a lot of damages. " Explained the young woman. Her lips bent into a rather vicious grin before starting again. " Moreover, did you know that the human body is made of water for about 65 % ? "

This kind of information had nothing special to begin with. But when it got out of the mouth of somebody who could control water, the prospect was very different. When the mages understood what she meant, the brunette didn't left them the time to try anything and she held out her hands, palm facing them.

 _ **CHI O TSUKAMU (blood grab) !**_

The fairies suddenly felt their body being pulled towards Mizuki but the attraction came from the inside of their body. It's when he saw his veins bulging that Gray finally understood what was happening. And Mizuki confirmed his suspicions.

\- " You can't do anything when someone control your own blood, right ? But you know what is worse than being forced to follow a body who do not obey us anymore ? Feeling our water being expelled from our body. "

 _ **MIZU NO KYOHI (water reject) !**_

Just as the 2 mages were near her, Mizuki struck them in the stomach. But the worst for the mages wasn't the impact, but feeling all the water of their body being pushed away towards the back, which also compressed their organs against each other, the violence of the blow at this level showing by the blood which were spat from their mouths before they were propelled backward. The poor mages were dying on the sand whereas Mizuki, grimacing slightly by examining the wounds inflicted by Juvia, stood, always ready to go.

\- " You are more than off to a bad start, there. Don't try. You can't even approach me any more with the shape you are in, especially if you do not want to undergo the same treatment once again. "

But Juvia, who had just got up with difficulty, faced Mizuki, resolved to finish it, here and now.

\- " Juvia admit it. You are certainly the best when it comes to controlling water. But Juvia does not limit herself just at that. Juvia has other tricks in her bag. "

With this, she changed into water once again before rushing again at Mizuki, who sighed, mumbling a ' they never listen. ' She raised her hand towards Juvia but she realized that in fact, she had listened to her. She had overloaded her body with magic so that Mizuki couldn't control her anymore. Mizuki smiled slightly, almost proud to see her evolving and adapting herself so fast.

 _ **WATER JIGSAW !**_

One more time, Juvia changed into a wide spiral of water and attacked Mizuki, who counter-attacked at the same time.

 _ **UMI NO WAREME (cut slice-ocean) !**_

A long blade of water appeared on the arm of Mizuki and she cut Juvia who was knocked quite hard and Juvia re-formed immediately, having received the damages despite her aqueous shape, collapsing behind the Strizer.

\- " JUVIA! "

\- " It was not a bad idea to overload her water with magic to prevent me from taking control of it. But regrettably, this blade can cut the water and what hides inside it. Now, it is time for … Guh. What's going on ? "

Gray frowned, perplexed by the sight which offered itself to him. The veins of Mizuki had suddenly become darker and she roared in pain, trying to move her body but he resisted far too much, which made her strain and hurt herself.

"One second. Her blood ? But then …" the thoughts of Gray stopped just as he understood what was happening.

Behind Mizuki, Juvia just got up but some sort of red thread left her arm, connecting her with Mizuki. The Strizer, with a lot of efforts, finally managed to turn her head to look at the water mage who had a derisive look in her eyes.

 _ **WATER MAKE: BLOOD VIRUS !**_

\- "I took advantage of my attack to mix some of my water in your blood. Then now it is you who can't control your body anymore in control of your body. And now, we are going to finish this."

Not being able to hold her head in place anymore, Mizuki was forced to return to her starting position, facing Gray, who activated his powers of Devil Slayer, joined by Juvia who had broken her link with Mizuki, but the young brunette was still unable to move because the water of Juvia was still in her. The 2 mages called upon their magic and aimed, ready to finish it.

 _ **UNISON RAID: DEVIL'S ICED WATER ZEROTH NEBULA BOW !**_

Gray and Juvia, hands joined, created a gigantic bow of water and ice, using it to shoot a gigantic spinning arrow which crossed the distance which separated them from Mizuki who was violently impaled by the arrow before being dragged up to the other end of the beach, digging an enormous furrow in the sand and sending her crashing in the rocks constituting the pier. When the cloud of sand and dust dissipated, Mizuki was spread on the ground, frozen and covered with blood, completely knocked out. The 2 mages, by seeing that the enemy was out cold, dropped on the sand, side by side, getting their breath back and putting back their attention on their wounds, realizing they might have to go to the hospital before going back to Magnolia. Seating side by side, in front of the ocean, the moon rising on the horizon, covering the water white a white light. A sight that Gray found pretty idyllic and he turned his head to his partner, the lunar celestial body giving her an almost divine aura. Gray couldn't manage to think of something else, enthralled by the blue haired beauty by his side. Thinking again about what he felt for her and the fact that he couldn't find a way to express them and made a choice. He put his hand behind Juvia's head and pulled her towards him, putting his lips on her. Juvia opened wide eyes and her brain exploded, her mind was send straight into the stratosphere. It lasted one moment until Gray breaks the contact. Juvia still had her mind completely blurred when Gray talked.

\- " I know that it is sudden, but I made a decision and knowing that I'm not good with words, I preferred to act. "

\- " Juvia had always dream of that moment. No matter the way, Juvia accepts it. "

The two smiling at each other, they kissed once again, alone under the starry sky, the rest of the world disappearing for them, including Vincenzo, passing behind them, Mizuki on his shoulder, eating an apple, happy for the 2 of them, leaving them both alone, just the both of them in their own world, with just the moon as a witness.

 **Here's for the ninth. I tried to slide a little of romance but I am far from being an expert on the subject so I'm sorry if it was clumsy. And yes, I took some technique of the fishman from One Piece for Mizuki. Problem ? And sorry if some technique name aren't that well translated, I didn't looked very far. We will see each other soon for the 10th chapter. Goodbye !**

 **Next time: Wake-up call and animated announcement. The hurricane of love comes down on the fairies. Sounds problems of the guild.**


	10. Chapter 10 : Love is in the air

**Hey there guys ! I hope you're all good because I am, ready for this 10th chapter already. I hope that you like that fic. As usual, don't hesitate to make a review to share your remarks and advice. In the meantime, we are keeping up the story.**

 **I am not the owner of Fairy Tail, I only use it, that's all.**

 **Chapter 10: Love in the air**

/- Somewhere, in an unknown place -/

The raising sunlight leaked through the shutters of the windows of what seemed to be an office. A big desk made of black wood was inside, a man sitting behind it, looking tired, rubbing his left temple with his fingers, his head put in said hand, resting on the armrest of his red velvet armchair. If this man was a perfect stranger, the same couldn't be said about those who sat in chairs in front of him, because those were Vincenzo, Xun, Dmitri and Mizuki, the latter still nastily bashed up by what Juvia and Gray made her undergo, and their expressions were very different one from another. Vincenzo seemed embarrassed, looking away, a hand rubbing the back of his head, Xun remained impassive, eyes closed, Dmitri clearly was wondering what he was doing here, while Mizuki was not proud of her. After a sigh, the man in the armchair replaced the headband he had across his face and left eye (A.N. : Kakashi style) and addressed his accomplices.

\- " Tell me. When were we told that we HAD to attack them to test them ? "

\- "Well, uh…" tempted Vincenzo.

\- " NEVER ! "

The explosion of the 'boss' was stressed by his two hands which banged the desk with strength, making 3 of the 4 'victims' jump, Xun being the only exception who just opened his eyes.

\- " You just attacked them without even thinking about any other way to do it. I know we had to test them physically, but we also have to test their spirit and their heart if we want to know if yes or no they can be useful for our project. Did you learn anything useful for us, at least ? Vincenzo ? "

\- " They know how to work in team. Even when they aren't form the same guild " Tried the brown haired guy, getting an empty gaze from the 'boss'.

\- " No, really ? I wouldn't have guessed that ? Xun ? "

The latter stayed without answering, his eyes fixed on a spot right in front of him.

\- " … Very well, thank you for your answer. Dmitri ? "

\- " Some of those guys are altruists at heart. " Finally answered Xun, thinking about Rogue.

\- " LEARN TO ANSWER WHEN WE ASK YOU THE QUESTION, NOT ONE HOUR LATER ! So, Dmitri ? "

\- " … Even the most weakest are strong. " answered the iron man, thinking about how Jet, Droy end Levy stood against him.

\- " *sigh* Thank you for the information. Really useful. Mizuki ? "

\- " Well … Their feelings can make them very dangerous. " She explained, thinking once again about the violent fit of jealousy Juvia had faked.

\- " To say thing simply, not a single one of you learnt something useful. Well done, really. " He ended on a tone of reproach.

\- " On the other hand, a fight is probably the best way to know what they are really made of. "

These words drew the attention of the 5 people sitting at the desk on a man sat on an armchair farther in the room, playing cards with 4 other people, a woman seating a little farther checking her make-up, raising the number of people presents to 11.

\- " You're not completely wrong, J. But if we could resort to a more diplomatic and psychologic way, we would know better about what they are worth as a person. I just ask for a little more softness for this mission, is it too much to ask that from you ? "

\- " It's in adversity that people shows themselves the best. " Chained Xun. " It is one of the best way to know how a person really works. "

\- " I didn't said that I didn't share that point of view. I am even completely agreeing. But the fact is that we all have to be in the best of the shape as possible in case our deadline is shorter than planned. And it's not by getting ourselves wrecked by those mages that we're going to do that. Look at the state in which Mizuki is. And Dmitri and Xun aren't totally cured either. Imagine what will take place if we are all in the same state when the moment come. "

\- " You needs to cool down, Stan. " Answered the only other woman in the group, without looking away from her mirror. " It is not because he named you responsible for this expedition that you have to put yourself under so much pressure. "

\- " Yeah, I know. But that mission is really important, we don't have a margin of error that big. "

This is when the 'boss' noticed that they were only 11, what drew another sigh out of him, lowering is head.

\- " Where is that lazy troublemaker ? " He asked, knowing very well that he was going to hate the answer.

\- " He left to go visit some place. Called Magnolia. "

\- " I knew it. " He declared before dropping on his armchair, massaging his twitching temples.

\- " It looks like your desire to be more diplomatic is going to have to wait. " Vincenzo chuckled.

\- " Shut up. "

/- Aonami -/

The festival was going full swing while it was only 10 o'clock in the morning. The fine sand beach stomped by tourists who had come take advantage of the sun, the sea and diverse activities, while delighting in drinks and other typical dishes from this side of the country thanks to the many stands raised on the beach. Some people, specifically the managers of said stands, had however noticed, without questioning it any further, that some things had changed : their stocks seemed just a little different, their stands not being at the exact same place as yesterday, those who were competing in the surf contest wondered about the absence of the one who had been THE sensation on the waves yesterday and every one of them who played or swam in the ocean felt that the water was a lot more cold than yesterday, far too much for the season. All his questions had the same answer: the 2 mages who just woke up, sitting in their hospital room where they had spent the night to heal the wounds they acquired the day before, nursing their bodies covered in bruises, which were not only due to the fight they had last evening. After beating Mizuki, Strizer of the ocean, they had spent the rest of the evening repairing the stands, breaking the ice which covered the bay and to put the beach back like it was before to make sure that the festival wouldn't be cancelled because of them, which would have put yet another line on the already solid reputation the guild had as being experts in public goods demolition. They had not completely been healed, but Juvia and Gray had to get back to Magnolia as quickly as possible because they had 2 news to share with the guild, already knowing which one were going to get the most reaction.

They were on their way to the train station, limping all along the way, faces straining at each step so much their sore muscles made them suffer when they were suddenly pushed aside by something, Juvia losing her balance and almost felled to the ground, but Gray caught her before she could touch the ground.

\- "Are you ok, Juvia ?" Gray, worried because of the still visible wounds on the blunette, asked.

\- "Yes, Juvia is fine. But what pushed Juvia aside ?"

They turned their heads but noticed with bewilderments that the street was deserted, and nobody was near. Perplexed, they resumed their road, being wary just in case it happened again. When they arrived at the station, they got in the train and sat down side by side in one of the cars, the head of Juvia settling slowly on the Gray's shoulder, the latter snaking his arm behind the back of the one who was from now on his girlfriend, moving her closer to him before dozing off, rocked by the light oscillations of the train that returned to Magnolia, Gray falling asleep his mind busy thinking about what happened in the street but decided to forget it, without knowing that this jostling was literally the calm before the storm.

/-Magnolia-/

It was a completely normal day for the guild of Fairy Tail, with the mages discussing, drinking and eating, each one of them busy with their own activities. At the bar, Lucy was sipping on her strawberry milkshake while observing Nastu from the corner of her eyes, the latter busy talking with Panther Lily and Charla. Indeed, in a rare moment of good thinking, Natsu thought that Happy had left to go meet the other Exceeds, so he was trying to know where they could be from Shagotte's daughter and the former guard of Edolas. But alas, none of the two knew where they were situated. The poor pink haired dragon, although less depressed than a few days ago, had the ever-growing desire to leave the town and look for his partner, but he had decided to trust his 'son' and wait for him to returns. Lucy looked at the scene, thinking once again about Happy. His obsession for fish, its uncalled-for remarks all the time, his contagious smile, all the times when she had pulled him by the whiskers because he had made a snarky remark about her weight, but also his small moments of heroism, like the time when he had almost blow up with Jackal from Tartaros to protect the city of the councilor Michello. Those memories made her smile. Happy had probably left because he was feeling useless and weak compared to the other Exceeds, but he had done a lot for everyone.

That is when the doors of the guild opened all the way and the mages saw Gray and Juvia, side by side, covered with bandages, wind blowing from behind them.

\- "Hey, guys." Began Gray, before Juvia pursues

\- " We are back ! And we have a big news ! "

\- " What do you mean, 'Hey, guys' ? What happened to you two ? " asked Elfman, having joined the 2 mages just like many others, encircling the water and ice team.

\- " Make that brain of yours work, stupid. What could have put them in this state, in your opinion ? " Answered Evergreen, sighing because of the idiocy of the one that many considered as her boyfriend.

\- " A Strizer, right ? " proposed Makarov, who walked toward the 2 mages, his hands behind his back, followed closely by Wendy who hurried to check if the wounds of his friends aren't too serious.

\- " Yeah, the ocean's one. " Confirmed Gray, Wendy using her magic on his stomach, spotting some internal damages.

\- " And for once it was a girl. " Precised Juvia, getting checked by Wendy.

\- " It seems like that group have every kind of people in it. . " Charla, turning to her protégée before asking. " So, Wendy ? "

\- " They had more luck than the others, but it seems like some of their organs were compressed. A little bit of my magic and they'll be good for the most part. "

\- " Well, take care of them, Wendy. " answered Makarov by turning his heels to return to the bar where Lucy and Mirajane still were. " After all, there is 8 of them left so stay on your guard. "

\- " Hey, wait. We didn't told you what the big news was." Took offence Juvia, inflating the cheeks to show its disappointment.

\- " Is that so? It was not the elimination of Strizer? Then what was it ? " Asked Gajeel, sitting next to Levy, an arm around the latter both sharing their meals.

The smile of Juvia stretched up to her ears before sticking to Gray's right arm.

\- " Gray and Juvia are together ! "

A silence, then laughter. Not what Juvia expected at all. Gray smiled slightly raising the eyes to the sky : he knew that the others wouldn't believe her. She was known to exaggerate their relation. But he did looked forward to seeing jaws falling on the ground, which was going to occur in a few seconds.

\- " She is telling the truth. " He said passing his arm around Juvia's waist. " We really are together. "

The silence, then the chaos. Everyone who was drinking did a spit take, like Lucy who sprayed Romeo, who had come get something to eat, but the latter was as the others too shocked to react to that. Gajeel and Levy were coughing heavily, trying to swallow what they had in their throat after the shock made them choke on their meal, Natsu was like the others, frozen, eyes as wide as plate and jaw hanging. Erza even let her strawberry cake fall to the ground, which shows how deep the surprise was. Once everyone had settled down, they threw themselves on both of them and began to drown them with questions, the poor mages not knowing what to do until the characteristic noise of glass breaking draws the attention of everybody.

They turned their head all at the same time, facing Mirajane, still behind the bar, eyes open wide, who had just dropped the glass that she was wiping. Everybody could see her breathing really fast and this is when people became afraid. She was the queen of gossip and auto-proclaimed matchmaker of the guild, spending her time to try to find people who could make great couples and she had under her eyes one of the 'projects' she liked the most. Cana threw herself on the barmaid, pulling her towards another part of the building.

\- " Come, Mira. I think you need to calm down before going back. "

\- " J-J-Ju-Juvia e - and G-Gray, t-they … "

\- " Yes, it was not a dream and I'm as ecstatic as you, now come here, you need to relax. "

Cana dragged the barmaid, paralyzed by what she had just saw, her heart beating faster than never, and took her to the room on the other side of the building, where the swimming pool was, hoping that the she-demon could calm down, but alas, fate had decided to torment the young white haired woman.

/- Flashback: swimming pool, by the time Gray and Juvia returned -/

Yukino was alone, sitting on one of deckchair arranged around the swimming pool of Fairy Tail, her chocolate-brown eyes lost in the pond, her mind clouded with question. She was so focused that she did not hear that someone was approaching her, making her jump slightly by feeling somebody sitting down next to her.

\- " Yukino, are you ok ? "

Turning her head, she met Sting concerned eyes, which had just joined her.

\- " I looked for you everywhere, I didn't though I'd find you there honestly. What is it ? "

\- " Nothing. It is just that … All that is happening … I wonder what is the point of this battle. Knowing nothing about them disturbs me, I don't know what to think of it anymore. "

\- " I understands you. " agreed Sting, turning his head to the swimming pool. " A full platoon of guy come out of nowhere and attacks us one after the other to test us. That's completely stupid. But we can't say that they aren't strong."

At those words, Yukino wiggled slightly, but Sting noticed it.

\- " Besides, I can't help but be slightly afraid. When I saw what they did to Rogue, I … "

Seeing that Yukino was trembling, with tears in her eyes, Sting took her in his arm to calm her, but it was didn't worked like he thought it would. Once in Sting's arms, the celestial mage let herself go, weeping, letting go all the stress she gathered all the week. Sting let her cry, rubbing her back slowly to comfort her, all the while whispering reassuring words in her ear, which calmed the sobs of Yukino, and after a few moments, she slightly pulled away from Sting. But when their eyes met, they got lost in the other eyes, their feelings getting transmitted in a flash by the spark which shone deep in their pupils. Without a word, lost in their own world, they got closer to each other, closing the gap between their bodies.

/- end of the flashback-/

Cana and Mirajane couldn't move any more, suddenly mutes, their eyes locked on the couple kissing in front of them. Both young lovebird were totally in their bubble, but the dragon sense of Sting noticed that something wasn't right. The dragon of light reopened his eyes, without interrupting the kiss, Yukino still in her own world, turning his eyes towards the disturbance that he had felt and when he finally noticed both fairies in the entrance of the room. Understanding what their presence here meant, he got up suddenly, moving away from Yukino who almost complained about the sudden stop of the kiss when she saw Sting standing, looking flustered, then following his gaze she saw Cana and Mirajane, blushing all of a sudden when she understood that they had been found. Cana looked away from both Sabertooth mages to focus on Mirajane, the white haired beauty could feel her heart beating faster than a minigun, before tipping over to the back, eyes rolling upwards, clear sign that she was in a state of shock.

\- " You really chose your moment to jump on each other well, you two. " Complained Cana, without any filter as usual, whereas both lovers blushed even more.

\- " N-No, Cana. This is not what you think … We have j-just " tried Yukino, embarrassment killing her, her boiling face between her hands, Sting standing next to her simply looking away.

\- " Well, it doesn't matter. " Cana turned back to Mirajane, who already seemed to regain consciousness. " I'm happy for you two, but I'm going to take her to the infirmary, she needs it, I think. "

With this, she slide her arm under the barmaid's shoulder and lift her, taking him to the infirmary of the guild, the card mage already tired of this day.

/-Infirmary-/

\- " They sure are noisy out there. What the hell is happening ? "

Minerva, as usual, sat next Rogue in the sick bay, the latter showing no sign of waking up ever since he fell into that coma, her head however turned to the door, intrigued by the noises and the roaring she could hear through the thick wooden door.

\- " I don't know, but that has to be something big. "

The voice she just heard was hoarse and broken, but pleasantly familiar for Minerva. Putting back her attention to the bed, she saw Rogue, eyes hollow and tired, but finally opened, for the first time for quite a long time, too much for the young brunette.

\- " ROGUE! You are finally awake ! "

\- " It seems like it, yes. "

Remembering the promise she made with herself, Minerva got straight to the point, not wanting to lose any more time.

\- " Rogue, I love you. "

Rogue turned his head to her, opening his eyes as much as possible considering his current state, shocked by Minerva's words.

\- " In fact, I think I'm still sleeping. Yeah, that's it. I'm probably still dreaming. " He was then pinched really hard by Minerva, not amused by that. " OUCH ! OK, I'm not dreaming. But then, you … "

\- " Yes, Rogue. I meant to tell it to you at the moment you'd wake up. You have a lot of nerve making me wait for so long. " She complained, arms crossed under her chest, a cute sulky pout on her face. Rogue smiles by seeing that, holding out his hand towards her face, turning her head to him and, forcing on his numb body, got closer to her, putting his lips slowly on her, the brunette eyes opening wide before closing them and returning the gesture, their little moment not lasting for a very long time.

*Boom* - " AAAAAAAAHH! "

A shout and the deaf noise of a body falling to the ground drew their attention and they turned their head to see Cana, standing next to Mirajane, the barmaid spread on the ground, some foam coming out of her mouth, her body convulsing.

\- " WHAT THE HELL ?! " Roared the cards mage, pointing a finger towards both tigers. "FIRST GRAY AND JUVIA, THEN YUKINO AND STING AND NOW YOU ?! I'm pleased to see you finally awake, Rogue. BUT IS IT SOME KIND OF PLAN ?! DO YOU WANT TO KILL HER THAT BADLY !? "

The 2 tigers, scarlet red, looked away, trying to do as if nothing happened, but Minerva's mind was running wild over what Cana had said.

\- " Wait. How's that, first Gray and Juvia then Sting and Yukino ? You mean that … "

\- " I'm very happy for you and all of that, but if you don't mind, I have a barmaid to wake and lovers to tease, and you are part of them, trust me, I won't forget you two. "

With this, she turned around towards Mirajane, still convulsing, still trapped in a seizure, doing everything she could to get her back, under the embarrassed and nervous gaze of the Sabertooth mages.

/- Guild hall, later-/

Life got back on its usual track in the guild of Fairy Tail after the shock, no, the trauma which had been caused by the revelation of Juvia and Gray, Sting and Yukino and Rogue and Minerva going out, revealed at the same time. Thus everybody attended to their usual activities, the talks were mostly about the new couples. Everybody was basically having fun, except for some of them like Lisanna not completely listening since she was busy in picking up the shards of the glasses shattered by Mirajane's powerful shriek when she came back in matchmaker mode. The main mages had split in 2 groups, boys on one side and girls on the other one, every group attacking the new young lovebirds with questions, mainly about what triggered those changes. At the girls table, Wendy sat next to her best friend Cherrya, who was on cloud nine.

\- "Ah! So much love, it's so beautiful !" The young pink haired woman, eyes closed and hands joined in front of her as if she was thanking the sky for those changes. It was at that moment that she noticed something strange with her friend. Wendy had a dreamy look in her eyes, fixing a point while sighing, sipping on her lemonade. Following her gaze, Cherrya saw who her friend was looking at and a roguish smile appeared on her face.

\- "So, are we eyeing your Romeo, Juliette ?"

*PFFFFFFT* - "W-What ? B-But no, not at all !" Stuttered the healer, coughing noisily, almost choking when she spat out her drink.

\- "No, no, no. None of that with me. Admit it ! You are head over heel for him. You don't have to be shy about it, he is becoming a real hottie, I can only imagine what he will look like in a few years."

The words of the God Slayer were stuck on replay in the head of the Dragon Slayer. By looking at Romeo, who sat next to his idol Natsu, she could only admit that Cherrya was right. He had grew up, now a little taller than her, the jobs and the training had paid of, giving him a body many could see as perfect and he had grew a lot in term of power, still far from being one of the powerhouse of the guild, of course, but in a few years, he would certainly become one of the best of the guild. Realizing that she was almost drooling and so almost proving Cherrya right, Wendy shook her head to clear her mind.

\- " Don't insist. I said your wrong ! " Wendy said, denying her feeling stubbornly, before putting her glass violently on the table.

*BAM*

Slamming her glass on the table with strength certainly was going to make noise, but not to the point of it being heard through all the guild. Everybody turned their head to Wendy, who like them had no idea about what just happened.

\- " Don't look at me like that ! I don't know what just happened, I … "

People who were looking at Wendy, basically everybody, were stunned to see, or rather hear, Wendy's voice whose volume suddenly start going down to the point of making her go mute, the latter realizing just now what was happening to her and judging by her expression, she was as surprise as the others who tried to understand what was happening to her, the concern on Romeo's face being clearly visible, which Cherrya noticed but kept for her.

\- " But what happen to her ? " Asked Charla, worrying for her protégée.

\- " I detect no magic. What could cause that kind of thing ? " Wondered Makarov.

\- " Wendy, calm down. " Ordered Erza, managing to calm Wendy down before keeping up with his instructions "Try to say something. "

Wendy shook her head, expired then inspired before opening her mouth.

\- " Help me ? " What should have been an whispered sentence came out of her mouth like a cannonball, with the volume of a concert speaker at maximum power, which drilled the eardrums of all the people around her.

\- " Oh no ! I'm sorry. Ah but … " Wendy put her hands to her throat, the volume of her voice had returned to normal. " It's back to normal. "

\- " It's all very good, but that doesn't explain what caused those sound problem, for lack of better words. " remind Erza, an eye closed, rubbing her bruised ears.

\- " I think I know. " Answered Romeo, surprising the other, all eager for answer. " Makarov said that he hadn't felt any magic. But if we are talking about something non-magic, I can only think about a Strizer. "

\- " Uh, Romeo. You have some point, but I don't see what kind of Strizer would have fun disturbing Wendy's sound. "

\- " The bored kind. "

This new voice, totally unknown, drew immediately the attention of the mages who found it coming from the second floor. Sitting cross-legged on the railing was a young man, about 16 years, with blond middle-length hair combed in a Owen Wilson style and with grey eyes who seemed to change into multiple colors. The tanned skin, he wore a grey opened Hawaiian shirt with purple flowers and sleeves rolled up to his elbows, a pendant shaped like an eagle around his neck, a sky blue bermuda shorts and purple and white shoes. He had a smirk on his face which augured no good. The sudden appearance of this guy made the mages uneasy : for the first time, the Strizers came to find them at their home.

\- " The little guy was right. You need to trust the youth more, they could surprise you. "

\- " Small guy ? Hey, we have to be the same age, dude. " Romeo said, not appreciating to be called 'small guy'.

\- " And that's the case. Both 16 years old. " Answered the Strizer before smiling with all his teeth like an idiot. " So, does my sound manipulations pleased you ? "

\- "Then it's you who made me mute ?" Asked Wendy to confirm her suspicions which were more than founded.

\- "Yeah, cutie." Romeo twithed slightly by hearing this guy call Wendy 'cutie'. "Moreover, I didn't came here to have fun, well not in that way at least. Let me introduce myself."

With this, he jumped on the railing above the bar, ending standing up in front of the mages. He opened his hands, palms facing towards the sky. Suddenly, a deep rumbling noise could be heard outside of the guild and suddenly, the windows of the building burst and violent gusts of wind entered the hall, forming mini whirlwinds here and there in the guild.

\- "My name is Daniel Anderson, Strizer of the sky. Pleased to meet you. Are you ready ?"

/- Not far from Magnolia -/

In the border of a forest stood a man, wearing a long hooded jacket, with blue hair and a red tattoo on the right side of his face, going over his eye. It was Jellal Fernandez, who left the festivities for the anniversary of the victory against Alvarez for a job. His eyes were fixed on Magnolia, which was visible far off, worried about the kind of wide tornado which had just formed over the city. Behind him stood a man, completely hidden by his hooded jacket, Jellal talking to him without turning around.

\- "It's going to be you alone, now. Are you ready ?"

\- "More than ever."

\- "Good. Then let's go." And they went out of the wood, hurrying to reach Magnolia, ready to give a hand to the fairies who will need it.

 **There we are, the 10** **th** **chapter is done. I'm not that good with romance, so I'm sorry if this was kinda messy. I hope the story pleased you so far and that you'll like the rest. See you next time !**

 **Next time : Storm warning on Magnolia. Winds from a dragon, a god and another world. Gathered in front of the cyclone jail. A hero nobody was waiting for.**


	11. Chapter 11 : Wings of liberation

**Hi. We are back, still with that summer heat which is beginning hardly bearable, if it's not already the case for some of you. I hope that you can find a nice place to read this chapter without dying from the heat, all while taking advantage of that great weather. Now, I remind you that I am not the owner of Fairy Tail, and now let's go !**

 **Chapter 11: Wings of liberation**

The mages were all gathered in the center of the hall of Fairy Tail, their eyes aimed at this young blond man, standing several meters above the ground, the strong gusts of wind swirling around him. The mages looked at him suspiciously, the Strizer of the sky also observing them, a teasing smile on his lips.

\- " You really plan to face us in here ? You are all becoming more and more daring or you are the only one to be like that ? " Asked for Makarov, frowning, while squeezing his fists tightly, strangely nervous.

\- " In fact, no." Daniel let himself fall on his cloud, sitting with his feet dangling below him. " I was taking a stroll while trying to find a way to find some of you when I met two of the mages we had spoken about during our meetings. They were heading to the train station and I said to myself: ' Hey ! Here's a good way to reach Magnolia and its mages ! '. Yes, I'm talking about you, lovebirds. " He rested his words by tilting his body to look and point at Juvia and Gray.

\- " It was you, the thing which pushed Juvia aside. " Realized Gray, remembering himself of this strange moment at Aonami.

\- " Yeah, boi. I was literally glued to your ass ever since the train station. "

\- " And if you have been there all this time, what did you do to mask your presence to the point where even us Dragon Slayers couldn't smell you ? " Wondered Gajeel, standing side by side with Levy.

\- " I am the wind, the air. I have the same smell as the air around us for people like you who have a super sensitive nose. It's not your noise whose broken. I just don't have any odor. "

\- " I've listen to you more than I should have. Come and fight ! " Roared Natsu, becoming once again the hothead that he had always been, even for a moment, jumping on the Strizer, igniting his fist.

 _ **FIRE DRAGON'S IRON FIST!**_

Daniel, by no means impressed, now squatted on his cloud, holding out a hand towards Natsu.

 _ **GALE BLOW !**_

A sudden gust of wind wrapped itself around Natsu's fist, putting out the flames, Daniel then receiving a simple fist in the palm of his hand before closing his fist on the dragon's and throwing him to the ground, making him go through several tables.

\- "Gah! But, this technique … It was like …"

\- "Erigor of Eisenwald, right ?"

Natsu, who was getting up, froze all at once and, at the same time as the other Fairy Tail mages, raised their head towards the Strizer which had a satisfied smile on his face.

\- "H... How you know that name ?" Asked Erza, suddenly feeling uneasiness filling her. They knew that those Strizers had gathered information about them, but not to the point of knowing about their former opponents.

\- "We made our small investigation. The boss wanted us to know as much as possible about you and your stories. I think Vincenzo made that clear when he met the first group."

\- "The boss ?", asked Makarov, eyes opening slightly wider.

\- "Well, yeah of course. What did you thought ? That we were send to this world without being guided by someone ? We worked like madmen for this mission, even if I slept during half of the meetings, AHAHAHAHAH …"

The mages looked at this young man, a big sweat drop behind their head, not knowing what to think of this easygoing teenager laughing his ass off on something so simple.

\- "Well, that's enough laughing." He finally jumped off his cloud, landing in front of the mages, all taking a step back. "I heard that you had a lot of financial problem when you had to rebuild the guild each time it was damaged or destroy, whether it was by foes or friend. I don't really want you to have more problem of this kind so let's fight outside, I'll be at ease like that."

\- "Yeah, right. As if we are going to let you have a familiar ground to fight on." Answered Romeo. "You already have caused us enough problem when you were fighting 'at home'. Now, it's time for us to take the advantage by being the local and you the visitor. So we'll fight you in there."

\- " Hey, you aren't the one paying the bill, kid. Could you at least by a little concerned for the guild hall. " Answered Makarov, hitting lightly Romeo on the head with the side of his hand, concerned about the well-being of the building and the guild finance.

\- " Yeah well, you know, about where the fight is going to be … " Daniel stretched his 2 hands towards the mages, the swirling winds gathering in its palms. " ...It wasn't a question nor or proposition. It's a fact. "

 _ **TWISTER BURST !**_

A swirling mass of winds, like a tornado, rushed out all of a sudden on the mages who end up being sent outside the guild, the door breaking under the pressure, followed closely by Daniel who got out of the guild by gliding through the air. And the action began immediately after, all the mages, or almost all of them, throwing themselves at the same time on the Strizer who, not liking being ganged up on, took a deep breath, his rib cage inflating before their eyes. Some slow down seeing that, but Wendy and Cherrya, feeling that something bad was coming, shouted over the noise to be heard by the most people possible.

\- " COVER YOUR EARS ! "

Cherrya, Romeo and herself did that, just like the Exceeds and the Dragons Slayers, since their ear were more sensible they could hear the girls, but not everyone could.

 _ **SONIC SHOUT !**_

Daniel raised his head towards the sky and let a shrill roaring come out which propagated through all the city, breaking all the windows on its way and destroying the eardrums of all the present mages who didn't have time to protect themselves. Those who were the closest to Daniel had lost consciousness, some even had some blood coming out of their ears.

\- " I don't like being caught in a pincer movement like that. And if you find that having sound waves destroy your eardrums is painful, let me say that be impaled by a tornado is far worse than that. "

Following those words, he formed two spear made of swirling tornado-like winds in his hands.

 _ **TORNADO SPEARS !**_

He threw his two spears at Elfman and Evergreen, the two of them on the ground near him, twitching with agony, unable to evade it, but they didn't need to. Wendy and Cherrya intervened and sucked the 2 spears in front of a surprised Daniel who had forgotten that there were 2 air 'eaters' among the mages.

\- " Oh! I have never eaten an air as good as that one ! " Exclaimed Cherrya, who was as surprised by this unexpected taste as Wendy, but the ecstasy disappeared quickly, both mages returning their attention to Daniel who stood in the middle of the street, both friends inspiring deeply, filling their lungs.

\- " You did learn that we aren't immunized to our own element. But regrettably for you, " Daniel began, the air swirling around him. " … Air is very easy to manipulate, even if it's one of my opponents who made it. "

 _ **PURPLE FLARE : SHACKLES JACKET !**_

Purple flames suddenly appeared around him, immobilizing his arms by attaching them to his body. Daniel turned his head to the right, just the time for him to see Romeo smirking, before earing 2 different shouts.

 _ **DRAGON'S SKY ROAR !**_

 _ **GOD'S SKY BELLOW !**_

Daniel barely had time to turn his head to see two kind of cyclones, one made of white air, the other one of black air, the two mass of air rushing at them before being struck by both tornados at the same time which dealt a lot of damages while sending him farther in the street facing the guild. When the dust raised by the 2 attacks fell down, Daniel was stretched out in the middle of the main street of Magnolia, the winds which were swirling over the guild stopping at the same time. Everybody had their eyes locked on the young Strizer who, much to everyone surprise, began laughing his heart out.

\- " HAHAHAHAHAHA ! Ah, this is too good ! " He exclaimed by sitting up. " You know, I am a reckless guy, but not to the point of facing everybody at the same time. This is why we try to face you in small groups. And there, I have finally decided my opponents who will be ! "

He got up suddenly and his expression changed, a spark of sadism shining in his eyes. By seeing it, and by doing the math with his last words, Charla rushed to Wendy.

\- "Wendy ! Watch out !"

\- "Too late, little cat !"

 _ **MIST OF CLOUDS !**_

A thick mist made of clouds covered all the street, even including the neighboring houses and the guild hall, generating a mist so thick that nobody could see anything because of it.

\- "WHAT ? WHERE ARE YOU, GUYS ? LUCY !?" Natsu Roared, who couldn't use his other senses to spot his friends since the clouds who surrounded him had a smell of ozone which covered the other smells. But the only answer he obtained was from Daniel.

 _ **CLEAR CYCLONE JAIL !**_

Winds of a rare violence began to swirl inside the mist, quickly speeding with each passing second, blowing the clouds away and revealing to everyone that nothing seemed to have changed.

The keyword being 'seemed'.

When Natsu tried to join Wendy, he was suddenly thrown to the side, as if he was pushed away by an invisible force. The dragon got up, holding with his right hand his now bloody left arm.

\- "NATSU !"

Lucy threw herself on her best friend, who got up quite easily but without understanding what just happened.

\- "What was that ?"

\- "That ? It's my jail."

Daniel ended his 'explanation' by throwing a handful of sand towards the mages, but the sand met with an invisible wall. But the sand didn't fall to the ground. He was like absorbed by the 'wall' which wasn't really a 'wall' in fact and the sand was stuck in a whirlwind, revealing that it was in fact a huge invisible tornado, Wendy, Romeo, Cherrya and Charla now prisoners of it.

\- "The wind is invisible after all. It's the clouds, dust and other things it is blowing around who made it visible. What you have in front of you is a tornado made of an air so pure that it is basically invisible."

\- " Tornado or not, leaving you alone with them is out of the question ! " Roared Panther by taking off, decided in going inside this tornado by going through the top.

\- " You are wasting your time. " Daniel's words stopped the black Exceed. " I am the sky. The only vertical limit I have is the atmosphere. Thus there's the point in looking for an exit up there. There is not. "

\- " If we can't pass above it, " Lucy followed, putting a hand on her keyring. " We will pass underneath it. "

 _ **OPEN, GATE OF THE VIRGIN : VIRGO !**_

\- " You need something, princess ? " Asked the maid. "Is it time for punishment ?"

\- " NO ! Stop asking that. Just dig us a tunnel so that we can reach Wendy and the others. "

\- " Yes, princess. "

 _ **THUNDER CLOUD SPEAR !**_

Virgo was suddenly pierced by a spear made black thunder clouds, the spirit ending up being charred up without having the time to do anything, disappearing in a shower of light sparks. All eyes turned towards Daniel, still in his 'cage', a black cloud filled with lightning bolt in his hand. And he wasn't looking happy at all.

\- " Intervention are forbidden if you're not part of the fight. Is it because you aren't trusting their abilities to fight ? You better not underestimate the youth power. "

\- " Yeah, right. As if we … "

\- " STOP ! "

Gray was stopped suddenly by Natsu of all people who had just shouted a resounding 'STOP' which had certainly been heard all over the city.

\- " Let us trust them. They can do it. "

Nobody questioned the sudden wisdom of the fire dragon, knowing very well where it came from : it was his lack of trust in Happy who had been one of the reason why the Exceed fled a few days ago, something Natsu couldn't forgive himself for.

\- " Good. Given that we agree on the matter, let's go back to the main subject. " Declared Daniel turning his attention back on the 3 young mages and Exceed, from now on in human shape, he had in front of him. He turned his hands, palms towards the sky, a white mass appearing inside his pain.

 _ **HAIL CLOUD WHIP !**_

Daniel swung his two hands in front of him, clouds spreading in 2 long whip of some sort which went to struck the mages who dodge but still noticing that those clouds were particularly cold. By having a look at the buildings touched by the whips, they noticed wide frost trace.

\- " What ? This guy also controls ice ? I thought he was the sky ? " Wondered Romeo, clearly surprised, in the same way as Cherrya and Charla, but Wendy had the answer.

\- " He certainly also has control over the weather. The ice comes from hail and that explains the lightning used on Virgo. "

\- " Exactly. I don't have a lot of control over ice, water and lightning, but those clouds allows me to have more than trick up my sleeve. "

 _ **RED FLARE : BURNING BOMB !**_

Without warning, a ball of red flames struck Daniel, which caught fire at the time, roaring with pain while the flames ate away his skin.

\- " AAAAHHH! IT BURNS ! Why are those lousy flames so powerful ?! Shit ! "

\- " RED FLARE is a fire which has nothing particular, except that it is particularly hot. " Explained Romeo, covering his fists with flames of the same color. " I heard you talk enough, now come on and fight. "

\- " Tsk, not surprising that Natsu is your role-model. But your fire is not going to be very useful against me. "

 _ **PINPOINT CLIMATE : HEAVY RAIN !**_

Dark clouds appeared over the mages locked into the tornado, blocking the eye of the storm. Of these clouds then fell a particularly intense rain, a real flood which dipped up to bones the mages and the Exceed, putting out the Romeo's flames at the same time.

\- " You know what I like about this tornado jail ? There is nowhere to hide in case of heavy storm and bad weather. "

Clouds darkened even more and an ice-cold wind began blowing harder and harder.

 _ **PINPOINT CLIMATE : SNOWY HAIL STORM !**_

A real thunderstorm of hail and snow burst out inside the tornado, the hailstones, sized like tennis ball, falling off the sky in a waterfall of ice which bombarded the zone, the mages unable to do anything to avoid the monstrous quantity of cold missiles thrown by the clouds. When the shower calmed down, the 3 young mages and the Exceed were covered with bruises but were still ready to fight, as Cherrya and Charla showed it, rushing at Daniel, not without a little bit of help.

 _ **ILE ARMS !**_

Wendy enchanted his 2 friends, multiplying tenfold the power of their blows and Cherrya and Charla then began to struck the Strizer which was clearly not a big fan of hand to hand combat. Most of the blows hit bull's eye and while Daniel began to had problem dealing with those powered-up, it's when Cherrya went away to join Wendy that he understood that it was only the beginning. Still busy with Charla, he didn't saw what Romeo had in stock for him.

 _ **PURPLE FLARE : SHACKLES JACKET !**_

\- "Tsk, you really think that this thing is going to work again !" said Daniel, stuck in the purple flames camisole once again.

\- "No, this is why I am going to add something."

 _ **GREEN FLARE : VERTIGO BURST !**_

A stream of green flames struck Daniel face, the flames sticking to his face. But if these flames didn't particularly burned him, it's the effect of those flames that was the real problem for him. His vision became blurry and everything seemed to oscillate before him, as if he was on the bridge of a boat during a heavy storm.

\- "What … What is that ? What's happening to me ?"

\- "GREEN FLARE does not burn. But it blurs the senses of what it came in contact with. Seeing the actual intensity of the fire, it is blurring your balance and view. Try to counter-attack now." Explained Romeo by throwing a pike to Daniel who struggled but did not manage to correctly call his wind to put out the flames who blurred his brain. And meanwhile, Wendy and Cherrya could finish their preparation.

 _ **SKY DRAGON GOD'S GIANT CYCLONE !**_

Merging their two magics, both celestial mages unleashed the power of an enormous whirlwind combining Wendy's white winds and Cherrya's dark ones on Daniel who was unable to dodge and was struck quite hard, being thrown in his own tornado, the power of its winds crushed a part of his back. Laying out on the ground, the flames disappeared from his body, Daniel seemed out cold but he got up with difficulty, his look suddenly darker.

\- " You are seriously starting to get on my nerves really, really hard. " Seethed the Strizer between his teeth, his hands getting covered by a purple aura. " I think it is maybe the time for me to step up my game. "

\- " Sorry, but we are going to finish this now. SKY GOD'S BEL… *wheeze* ! "

Suddenly, Cherrya fell on her knees, having a hard time breathing.

\- " Cherrya ! What's going on? " wondered Wendy, worried for her friend.

\- " Can't breathe … "

\- " Well, breathing when there is no air around you is quite hard. It's kind of obvious."

This last sentence, said by Daniel, made every heads turn in to look at him and in his right hand they could see a beach ball sphere.

\- " Did you just stole her air ?! " Romeo asked, not believing his eyes.

\- " Yeah I did, but the air obeys me so it is not a problem for me. That means I could also made you all choke to death with the air you have in your lungs. " The mages had a backlash, a spark of fear in their eyes, clearly not enjoying the idea of being killed by their own organs. " But there is nothing fun in that, I prefer another method. "

On these words, the size of the sphere was reduced until it had the size of a ping-pong ball and he stretched out the sphere towards the mages.

 _ **PRESSURIZED AIR GUN !**_

The sphere burst and a ray-like jet of air no wider than a garden hose spurted out towards the mages, passing through the tornado and going as far as digging a hole in the wall of the guild, about twenty meters farther.

\- " Pressurized air is a real marvel. Put as most air as possible in the smallest possible volume. That guaranteed an unprecedented penetration force. And that thing was nothing. Look at that. "

He raised his hands toward the sky, the two taking on a purple aura and a sphere sized like a 3-story building appeared over him. Little by little, the sphere decreased in volume under the stunned eyes of the present mages until it reach the size of a soccer ball.

\- " And now, what is going to happen if I release all that air in a space as small as this one ? I am going to tell you. All four of you are going to get fucked up really bad. "

 _ **PRESSURIZED AIR : HEAVY PRESSURE BOMB !**_

He threw his sphere to the ground and all the air accumulated inside immediately spread out all over the prison, and even outside, the shockwave sent some people flying even outside the tornado. Some were lucky, landing without any pain, whereas others, less fortunate, were thrown into walls or through windows. The breath was so powerful that it crushed several nearby building but what was the hardest was to see the 4 prisoner of the tornado. Not only the shockwave had struck them with the strength of a truck launched at full speed, but they had all landed in the dangerous whirlwind the tornado was which had served its purposed by making them stay inside, slashing their bodies at the same time. They were now spread out on the ground, suffering like never before, their clothes torn, trying to recover as best as they could. As for Daniel, he was still standing in the center of the tornado, arms crossed, looking satisfied, licking a trickle of blood flowing from the corner of his mouth due to the blow he received earlier.

\- " It was fun ! So, do you still have the strength to go against me ?"

\- " That's enough bullshit ! You may be a kid, you are going to pay if you hurt them more than that ! " Erza, a few centimeters away from the prison, her gaze hard as steel looking at the Strizer exclaimed.

\- " Kid ? I'm 16 years old, old hag ! "

A silence. An angel passed. The horrified looks in the mages eyes all turning to Erza, who had her head lowered, a malefic aura growing in intensity at each passing seconds. Daniel had just touch a sensible point, clearly something that wasn't a good idea knowing the redhead.

\- " What did you just say, little shit ? " Asked the scarlet haired warrior, a sword appearing in her hand.

 _ **CRESCENT SLICER STORM !**_

A multitude of air blades shaped like crescent moon suddenly appeared around Erza, who defended herself, countering them with her sword, something more than easy for her. But Daniel knew that and had prepared something else, a ring of air swirling in the air over the knight-mage, nobody noticing it.

 _ **CRUSHING CYCLONE !**_

Too occupied by the blades of air which surrounded her, Erza noticed the tornado which had appears from the ring above her. The tornado came down and finally reached the ground, the impact creating a big crater of more than 2 meters in diameter in the paved ground, crushing the stone on almost 1 meter deep but to the surprise of everyone, even the Strizer, Erza wasn't in the crater.

\- " I came just in time, it would seem. "

Following this new voice up to its source, mages and Strizer saw Jellal, standing on the roof of a nearby building, holding Erza in his arms, the latter's face as red as her own hair by realizing where she was.

\- " J...J... Jellal ! What you make there ? "

\- " I was on my way to the city when I saw strange clouds over the city. When I felt a strange strength coming from the city, I understood that we had to deal with one of these Strizers. "

\- " Wait, how do you know about the Strizers ? You left before we discover their existence. "

\- " Someone told me about it. "

\- " Who told you about it ? "

Jellal didn't answer this last question, just sending a mysterious smile to her friend before coming down from his perch, followed by Erza who got over her surprise. Jellal approached the prison tornado, looking at it under Daniel's suspicious look.

\- " I wasn't expected you, to be honest. But let me remind you that the fights are done in small group and I have already chosen my opponents. "

\- " I understood that well. I won't be the one who will stop you, but I know very well the one who will. " Jellal answered mysteriously, which intrigued the mages, not knowing who he could be speaking about, but Daniel was by no mean impressed.

\- " Oh yeah ? I don't see anyone right now. Where is your partner ? " Taunted Daniel.

\- " On the way. I have the feeling that he wants to make quite the entrance. "

Daniel was also rather intrigued by the words of the mage, but his impatience got the upper hand over the rest. So, he grabbed Charla by her hair and lifted her above the ground, his other hand surrounding itself with air which then took the shape of some kind of blade.

\- " I don't have the patience to wait for him. I'll be honest, I'm quite interested in fighting you. But if you don't want to, I'll have to find a way to make you fight. " Daniel put the edge of his blade against the Exceed throat.

\- " CHARLA ! " Cried Wendy, with tears in her eyes because of her inability to move and go protect her friend. Jellal however was tensed, but tried to stay calm, eyes closed, trying to locate his partner.

 _\- " It would be a good time to make an entrance. Where are you ? "_

\- " So, What are you going to do ? Keep your neutrality and let her die or come and fight ? I'm giving you 3 seconds ! " Pushed Daniel.

 _\- " I have to wait. "_

\- " 2 ! "

\- " Jellal ! Do something! " Begged Panther Lily.

 _\- "He get closer. Quick ! "_

\- " 1 ! "

\- " JELLAL ! Stop waiting for your guy, go on ! " roared Natsu, reflecting the state of stress in which everyone was at the moment.

 _\- " Almost ! "_

\- " 0 ! IT'S GAME OVER ! "

\- " NOOOOOOOOOO ! " Shouted the mages, Wendy's face covered with tears, by seeing the blade getting closer Charla's neck, when sudden Jellal gave a shout of his own.

\- " HE IS THERE ! "

A peak of magic power was felt and stopped Daniel suddenly, the Strizer turning his head to look behind him, a silhouette appearing in the sky, approaching quickly.

\- "What the fuck is that ? " Wondered Daniel, receiving an answer in a way he would have never imagined. The shape dived towards the street, changing brutally of direction when he reached the ground and rush towards the tornado. Daniel thought that whatever it was, it would be stopped by the tornado, but the shape suddenly accelerated and something nobody would have dare to consider possible up to now happened. The silhouette pierced the tornado, destroying the prison. Daniel remained motionless, stuck on his spot, taking a few seconds before turning the look at his right hand, now empty, while 3 scratches covered his arm, his blood spattering all at once as the winged silhouette stopped in a cloud of dust.

\- " GAAAAAH ! What is that ? Who is there ? " Roared Daniel, a hand on his bloody arm.

The silhouette remained half hidden by the dust, putting Charla, still in human shape on the ground, using his bag as a pillow for her.

\- " Wait a second. " Interrupted Natsu. " This bag, it's … "

The eyes of the mages landed on the bag, which was in fact a green backpack which they recognized immediately, but without wanting to believe it. The silhouette visible through the dust let it know that it was a young man who was a head taller than Charla and whose muscle could be near the level of those of the Dragon Slayer. He just wore a blue pants and white and blue sneaker. He was bare-chested with bandages wrapped up around his front arm. When the dust fell a little more, they distinguished that this guy also had a long tail on his lower back going out of a hole in his jeans and he also didn't have human ears, but 2 pointy triangular ears on his head, in the middle of his shoulder-length hair combed in spikes with locks falling on his face. But when the dust had completely fallen, revealing the colors, everybody, mages and Strizer, thought they were all stuck in an hallucination. It was a man-cat, the same kind of human shape as Charla, but with claws and in some place, particularly on his arms, a blue furry coat with some touches of white, with a human face with dark eyes and a broad smile easily recognizable. And as if it wasn't enough, all could see on his back a green Fairy Tail mark. The first one to break the silence was Natsu, shared between joy, surprise and incomprehension, pronouncing the name everybody had in their mouth but didn't dare to pronounce.

\- " Happy ? "

The newcomer flashed a huge toothy smile, turning his head to his friends, waving at them.

\- " Aye ! "

 **HAPPY IS BACK! I hope that you will appreciate this 'new' Happy, that you will discover even more in the next chapter. Anyway, I hope that you'll like this chapter and that the next chapter will please you just as much. See you ! Bye !**

 **Next time: Happy, the unexpected hero. Clawing the clouds away. The burn of the sound barrier.**


	12. Chapter 12 : Supersonic threat

**How are you, everybody? I am in great form and delighted to offer you this new chapter which you will appreciate I hope so. Just let me take time to call back you that I am not the holder of the rights on Fairy Tail and one go there!**

 **Chapter 8 : Supersonic threat**

In front of the guild, the silence was heavy, the heavy atmosphere made the surprise and incomprehension almost tangible. While Wendy, Romeo and Cherrya had been put offside by Daniel, the Strizer of the sky, who was ready to kill Charla to force Jellal to come to fight him, Happy, revealing a new hybrid form to his friend, mainly human with cat ears, tail and claws, covered in several places with blue fur with white spot, had come out of nowhere and had vaporized the Strizers tornado jail, saving Charla and slashing the arm of the young warrior at the same time, which enthralled all the present mages, but also the Strizer who, after recovering from his surprise, decided to break the silence.

\- "STOP ! Time-out !" He began, making a T with his hands. "We didn't knew that this Exceed could transform ! Since when is he able to do that ?"

\- "You can trust us, we are as lost as you are right now." Began Panther, speaking in the name of the guild before turning to his blue furred friend. "Happy, is that really you ? But what happened to you ?"

\- "Nothing beside the fact that I decided to change a little. I won't be just the guild mascot now. From now on, I am going to fight, too !" Proudly announced Happy, his back facing his friends.

\- "You took your time to arrive." Scolded Jellal, his arms crossed. "Where were you ?"

Happy didn't answered right away, sliding his hand in a little bag which was hanging from his belt.

\- " Well, I flew over the market and " he then took a fish out of the pocket which he start eating, turning around to face the the others, a wide smile on his face. " … There was a discount on the fish, I couldn't miss that. "

\- " YOUR BULLSHIT COULD HAVE COSTED CHARLA'S LIFE, YOU FLYING GLUTTON ! " Roared Lucy, outraged to see that in spite of his obvious changes, Happy was still thinking with his stomach and his love for fish as much as before, but it made her smile either way : even despite his new form, he was still the same old Happy.

\- " Sorry, but now, I am going to take over, trust me, OK. " By saying these words, he had sent a small scowl at Natsu, without any wickedness nor blames but reminding the dragon of the reasons why he left in the beginning, which Natsu answered with a nod. He got the message. Erza then approached Jellal, her head full of question.

\- " Jellal, these changes in Happy, you are partly responsible for them, isn't it ? What happened exactly ? How did you find each other ? Is it him who asked for help or you proposed it yourself ? " Jellal stopped her by putting a finger on the lips of the mage warrior, which made the latter's face go as red as her hair.

\- " I will answer these questions later. For now, let us just look at the fight. " This is when he noticed where his finger had landed and his face suddenly took the same shade as her childhood friend and he removed his index all of a sudden as if Erza's face had burned him, which wasn't impossible judging by the heat her face was releasing. " S-Sorry ! It's not I… "

The other mages just smiled before turning their attention back on Happy, who faced Daniel, a full fishbone hanging between his sharp teeth. Charla then began to wake up, opening her eyes and took some time to understand what she was doing on the ground, then she looked up and came face to face with a blue back on which proudly stood a green Fairy Tail mark. The white Exceed opened wide eyes, pronouncing the only name she could link with this description. When he turned his head to her, hearing her move behind him, she was able to confirm that it was not a hallucination but a reality.

\- " Happy ? " She asked, eyes moistening realizing that it was indeed her dear friend who was standing in front of her.

\- " Aye ! " Answered Happy, showing his usual smile, with a voice deeper than what the other had grown accustomed to, but still easily recognizable, the white Exceed reddening even more with each passing second. Daniel the coughed awkwardly, gaining the attention of everyone once again.

\- " Well, I see that getting your mascot back made you all really happy (A.N. : *badum-tss*), it's all really nice and all and I understands you in a way, but we are in a fight, and I am afraid that even with an overgrown cat it doesn't change the fact that you'll lose. " he taunted, very confident in his chance to win.

\- " Hey ! I did not trained 24/7 to hear that my presence is not going to have any consequences. " said the Exceed indignantly. " And I am going to prove it !"

He plunged his hand into the fish back he had on his belt and took out of it, under the spectators skeptical looks, a handful of fishbones which he threw at Daniel, the Strizer slapping them away with the back of his hand. But he just had the time to swipe them off that Happy appeared in front of him in an instant.

 _" He is fast ! "_ Thought all the spectators by watching Happy readying a punch which Daniel evaded but in the same movement, Happy got over the Strizer by swirling on himself, wrapping up his tail around the neck of the blond young man, the momentum of the rotation pulling the Strizer off the ground then throwing him back like a suplex to send him crashing on the ground head first. But the Strizer recovered fast by putting his hands on both side of his head, stretching his arms and legs at the same time, both foot joined together aiming at Happy's face.

 _ **RISING STORM KICK !**_

Daniel's feet sent a burst of swirling air on the Exceed who dodged with a backward somersault. When Happy touched the ground, he immediately rushed at Daniel, who because of his last assault was still in a handstand position, his back to the Exceed, a perfect target for the feline who threw himself in one leap at the Strizer like a missile to bury one of his fists in the Strizer back, sending him behind, the body of the young man digging a furrow in the pavements all while fighting to stood his ground and don't lose his support. The 2 stopped one moment to gauge the other, leaving to the public the time to exchange about what had just happened.

\- " I just can't believe it. Happy dominates him totally ! " Exclaimed Freed, like the others totally surprised by the fighting performances of Natsu's winged partner.

\- " I don't know what kind of training he went through, but it clearly did the job ! " Added Erza, turning her head to Jellal. " I hope that you will answer our questions after that. "

\- " I will, but just know that Happy is far from having shown everything he can now do. " Answered mysteriously the blue haired mage without looking away from the fight. From their part, Wendy, Charla, Romeo and Cherrya observed the fight, also totally surprised.

\- " I can't believe that it's really Happy. It's almost as if it's someone else." Admitted Romeo who was enthralled by the show.

\- " I just hope that he knows what he's doing. This guy is strong. " Cherrya added, Wendy agreeing with a nod while holding Charla in a sitting position by her shoulders, the Exceed looking at Happy, not missing a single moment of the fight, squeezing his small green bag against her.

 _ **VACUUM SHOT !**_

These words made the mages came out of their own world and their attention returned to Daniel, who had positioned his hands in front of him to form some kind of triangle which began sucking all the air around him like a vacuum cleaner, Happy fighting with great difficulty not to be inhaled but the inhalation was too strong and after a few seconds, while Happy was barely one meter away from the Strizer, all the air he had inhaled focused in one blast breath which struck Happy right in the chest, sending him crashing in one of the surrounding buildings, under the mages cries, afraid for their friend who got up without great difficulty. But Romeo began thinking about the Strizer techniques.

 _"These pressurized air attacks are powerful."_ He thought _" The penetration force of those things are deadly, if only I … Hey, wait ! What's the principle already ?"_

/- Memory -/

 _\- " Pressurized air is a real marvel. Putting as most air as possible in the smallest volume as possible..."_

/- End of the memory -/

Romeo lowered his head towards his hands. " _And what if that worked with other thing than air ? And if …"_ Lost in his thoughts, Romeo forgot the fight which started once again between the Strizer and the Exceed. Daniel tried to reach the feline with his hands covered with blades of air but the Happy's feline flexibility allowed him to dodge everything, the Exceed exploiting the slightest fault in his opponent's defense to strike Daniel even if the latter was also very talented to dodge, until they both took advantage of an opening in the other's defense to strike their opponent in the face, both fighter getting send back a few meters away at the same time. Wiping the blood flowing from the corner of his lips, Daniel crossed his arms in front of him, forming an X and flexing his fingers.

 _ **THUNDER CYCLONE CANNON !**_

A mass of black clouds formed on his arms, lightning bolt filling them more and more. Then the wind suddenly got up, clouds swirling on themselves then Daniel stretched his arms forwards, throwing a real tornado made of thunderclouds on the Exceed who didn't move.

\- "Happy, don't stay here doing nothing. Do something !" Shouted Elfman, before noticing that the claws of the Exceed were beginning to shine.

 _ **CLAW SLASHER !**_

Happy scratched the air in front of him with his glittering claws and they threw what seemed to be thin, horizontal and parallel white energies blades, three of them, towards the electric tornado of the Strizer, the blades cutting through them without any problem, cutting the gust all at once and kept on going forward, reaching Daniel and cutting him across his face, his arms and his waist, but the blades still continued farther, leaving cuts on the walls of the nearby buildings on several meters. Daniel remained motionless one moment, letting some blood pouring from the cut on his body before asking a question, still without moving an inch.

\- " What the hell was that ? "

\- " Claw Magic. I learnt that to be as useful as possible on a fight. It is not which is going to make me as strong as Natsu or Erza, but that will be enough to allow me to deal with people like you. Your winds won't be very useful against those claws, I'm afraid. " Answered Happy, smiling, chewing on the tail of the fishbone he had between his teeth. In front of him, Daniel seemed to stay unfazed, standing upright.

\- "Well. If I can't use my wind, the air or any other thing, I'll have to kick it up a gear. Literally. "

All of a sudden, the temperature soared suddenly by several degrees, taking the mages by surprise, the warmed air making the air undulate around the Strizer, who was still not moving.

 _ **MACH 1 PUNCH !**_

An explosion was heard and in a blink of an eye, Daniel had covered the distance separating him from Happy and had threw a punch in the feline stomach, propelling the Exceed up to the facade of the guild hall which explode due to the strength of the impact. Happy got out of the rubbles, nursing his bruised stomach, trying to understand what just happened.

\- " What was that ? Since when did he became so fast ? " Wondered Gajeel, constantly on his guard in case the Strizer would decide to change his target.

\- " I know ! It's the speed of sound ! The explosion we heard, it was because he moved so fast that he moved faster than sound itself. " Explained Levy, and doing so establishing the common factor between the explosion and the sudden speed of the young man.

\- " Hey ! I too, can be fast! " Countered Happy by spreading his wings, who thank to his new appearance had grown to be as big as his arms. Using his famous speed, he threw himself on the Strizer which took off, the fight now taking place in the air, between punches and projections, Happy succeeding, thanks to a lot of effort, to adapt himself to the Strizers speed but Daniel had more than one trick up his sleeve.

\- " You seem to have become used to my speed. I congratulate you for that, but we are far from the end. It was only my first gear. Let's kick it up a notch."

The temperature raised up once again and Daniel prepared a new punch. Happy got ready to intercept it, but regrettably.

 _ **MACH 2 UPPERCUT !**_

The blow came so fast that Happy barely had time to see it began moving that he had already reached his jaw, cracking the bone and sending the Exceed several meters into the air, the feline recovering thanks to his wings but when he lowered his head to find Daniel, the latter had already disappeared, reappearing suddenly behind him and Happy could nothing to dodge the right jab that he received right in his face sending him to crash with violence on the ground, joined quickly by Daniel who stayed some meters away, concentrating his power, the heat around his body increasing even more.

\- " RRRRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH! "

 _ **MACH 20: HIGH HYPERSONIC SPEED !**_

When Daniel stopped, his body had become as red as a boiled crawfish and was literally smoking, the air totally blurred around him, as if the mages were looking at a mirage in the desert. When Happy finally got up, he saw Daniel about 30 meters away, he blinked and Daniel was now just in front of him, the Exceed surprised by that speed, but not as surprised as the heat he felt coming out of his body. Daniel caught Happy's face with one hand, burning it in the process, readying his other fist.

 _ **MACH 20: HIGH HYPERSONIC FURY !**_

He shot several punches all at once on Happy, a flurry so fast that from the outside, it looked like the Strizer had several arms, each blow burning the feline body before Daniel finally let go of the face of his victim, letting the last blow, which was stronger than the other, send Happy back to his friends, writhing in pain.

\- " By being sound and air, I can exceed the speed of sound whenever I want, and even reach speed that are normally unreachable. Furthermore, the faster I get, the hotter I become, which makes me hot and fast enough to leave bad burn on my opponents. Well, now, whose turn it is ? " Taunted Daniel who, satisfied with his explanation, felt his couldn't-care-less attitude return little by little.

 _" The faster he is, the hotter he is ? This is giving me an idea... "_ Thought Romeo, deciding to try something new.

But he was not the only one who hadn't giving up yet. Wendy and Cherrya got up and threw themselves on Daniel, determined to finish this as quickly as possible. But regrettably for them, the fight had become more than unbalanced. Daniel was far to fast for the Sky Sisters and if by chance they managed to strike Daniel, the almost volcanic heat of his body made them suffer more than he did. They had to find a way to counter-attack and Wendy got an idea.

\- " Cherrya, tries to keep him busy, I have an idea. " Proposed Wendy, without giving more detail to her best friend who agreed immediately, totally trusting her Dragon Slayer best friend.

\- " OK, I am going to try, but whatever you want to do, do it fast. "

 _ **GOD'S SKY DANCE !**_

The young God Slayer gathered her magic and began pursuing the Strizer, aggressing him ceaselessly with swirling gusts of wind whenever she was close enough to strike. But Daniel's extreme speed made him almost unreachable even if his speed had begun to decrease slightly, his body emitting less heat. Taking advantage of a moment when she had managed to seize her opponent, Cherrya took a few second to gather her breath.

\- "Well ? Can't keep up ?" Defied the mage, panting, which mage the blond young man grin.

\- "I already said that the faster I go, the hotter my body get and if I'm heating too much, I could end up cooked like a boiled crawfish. Then I have no choice but to slow down, but it's not as if I needed to be faster than that. I am already fast enough for you."

And to prove his points, he moved in an instant to be in Cherrya's back, back to back before striking the young mage with a kick in her lower back, sending her to the ground. But he didn't have time to celebrate his victory that he was taken by surprise by an unidentified flying object which he identified very quickly. Long wild pink hair and eyes of the same color, small wings in the back and some sorts of feathers on her wrists and ankles, Wendy had just switch to Dragon Force mode. Going out of the heap of rubbles in which he had landed, Daniel seemed annoyed, but not discouraged by all that.

\- "You know, it's not a power boost of this kind which is going to protect you."

Wendy didn't answer, she just called upon her powers, surrounding herself with a green light.

 _ **ILE VERNIER !**_

Taking advantage of the speed boost granted by the double enchantment and her Dragon Force mode, Wendy rushed at Daniel, taking the latter by surprise, not expecting an acceleration as brutal as this one, which gave him a lot to deal with despite his already impressive speed and because of Wendy's dragon instinct which allowed her to feel his presence. But he nevertheless kept the advantage and he was about to make sure that it will stay like that.

 _ **SKY ARMY: BLADED SWALLOW !**_

A huge flock of swallows came out of the sky and swept down on Wendy, the fowls made of air with wings as sharp as razor blades assaulting Wendy from everywhere, the poor mage not knowing where to look and thus wasn't paying any more attention on Daniel, his speed way to high to allow Wendy to handle everything. But Daniel, in his euphoria, forgot that he hadn't just a single opponent.

 _ **BLUE FLARE : COLD BURST !**_

Daniel's field of vision found itself being filled with blue extremely cold flames which decreased his speed rapidly, allowing Wendy to finally counter-attack.

 _ **DRAGON'S SKY ROAR !**_

Filling her lungs with air, she unleashed the power of the Dragons Slayer signature attack on the Strizer, getting rid at the same time of a big part of the swallows which were attacked her, the rest being eliminated by Happy and Charla, who had recovered enough to help their friends. When Daniel got back up, kneeling on the ground, he clearly wasn't looking happy.

\- " You have to wonder what happened, no ? " Asked Romeo, blue flames dancing in his hand. " Blue Flare is a cold fire and since you said that your speed was bound to your body heat in a way, I figured that to slow you down, it was better to cool you down. And that worked pretty well it seems. "

\- " … Well, I'll have to admit that I might have underestimated all of you. It was a mistake, I admit it. But now, I'll to go all out on you. Be ready to suffer. "

The temperature went back up all of a sudden, reaching a whole new level of heat, the ground seemingly melting under his feet.

 _ **MACH 25 : RE-ENTRY SPEED !**_

Daniel's body had become blood red, a monstrous quantity of vapor emanating from his body whose skin began to crack here and there, the heat was way too intense and his body couldn't bear it completely. But this time, it was worth it. He had become so fast that even Wendy's instinct weren't enough to follow the Strizer who began to hit everyone and everything without a care in the world, eventually sending the Dragon Slayer crash into yet another building and jumping back just in time to avoid a stream of blue flames.

\- "Ah yes, you and your flames. I have exactly I need to take care of you."

 _ **GLOBAL CLIMATE: HEAVY STORM WINDS !**_

The wind suddenly got up and began blowing so hard that Romeo was unable to use his flames anymore, the strong wind putting them out as soon as they got away from his body. Happy and Charla nevertheless kept on with the assault, fighting against the wind and their wounds to try to save time so that the others could find a solution.

\- "How are we going to beat this guy ? He is far too fast, there's literally nothing we can do !" Complained Cherrya, her spirit brought down by the situation.

\- "I have a plan." Simply stated Romeo.

\- "Really ? What kind of plan ?" Asked Wendy.

\- "The stupid kind. Do you trust me ?"

\- "Well …"

\- "Absolutely !"

Cherrya didn't had time to give her answer that Wendy had given hers without the slightest second of hesitation, taking Romeo and Cherrya by surprise, the young man blushing slightly before Wendy realized what she had just done, blushing too because of her outburst.

\- "Well, I m-mean that, I-I t-trust you, Romeo."

\- "Oh ! Yeah, t-thank you." Answered the fire mage, his face as red as Wendy's.

\- "Ah, love ! It is so beautiful!" Commented Cherrya, her hands on her cheeks, literally daydreaming.

Romeo and Wendy would have blushed even more if they could, but the noise of a body crashing in a building brought them back to reality, Romeo concentrating on his flames. Meanwhile, Happy and Charla were suffering against Daniel, putting themselves between the Strizer and their friends to let them have time to think about what to do, but Charla had reached her limit and Happy was at the end of its strengths but still remain standing in front of the Strizer, his body covered in wounds and bruises, his fur and his skin both soaked with blood. Nevertheless, he kept on fighting.

 _ **PIERCING CLAW !**_

Pointing his claws to his opponent, he threw his arm forwards, sending some kind of white energy darts on the Strizer who, by no means worried and with a derisive smile on his lips, blocked the attack with the back of his hand before calling upon his winds, which kept swirling around him at a crazy speed and used it to send Happy back with Charla, and it was at this moment that Romeo appeared once again, a blue sphere in the palm of his hand, the fire mage sweating and panting, apparently totally focused on something.

\- "You didn't learned the lesson, it would seem. Your flames are of no use with a wind as violent as mine." Reminded Daniel, Romeo standing his ground, pointing his palm at Daniel who chuckled.

 _ **BLUE FOCUSED FLARE : COLD BLASTER !**_

The small blue sphere burst and threw a torrent of flame concentrated on a single point at the Strizer, the stream so fast and intense that the storm swirling around them was not enough to weaken them out enough and Daniel got hit dead on by the blast, the bite of the cold flames making the temperature of his body fall all at once until his speed was brought down to normal, hoarfrost forming around the impact point.

\- "GAH! What was that ?" Roared the young Strizer, surprised that flames could have survived while getting through his high-powered winds.

\- "Well, in a way, you did that to yourself. It is you who gave me the idea with your pressurized air. I said to myself that putting the as much material as possible in the smallest space as possible could also work with flames. And apparently, it is working pretty well." Answered Romeo, panting and feeling his strengths leaving little by little because of his wounds, sign that he won't be able to kept fighting for a very long time now, a fact that also applied to the other mages and Exceeds.

\- "Cherrya, I have an idea." Began Wendy, an idea suddenly occurring to her. "Call upon your winds, I am going to eat them."

\- "What ? But you can't do that ! My wind is not a normal wind !" Answered Cherrya, not having enough strength to get up.

\- "I can do it ! Natsu has already done it with the flames of the Fire God Slayer. I can do it too !"

After a small moment of hesitation, Cherrya agreed with a nod and wrapped Wendy in a whirlwind of black winds and Wendy, locking her own magic away, began to swallow it, something she was normally not intended to do. Daniel understood what was taking place and aware of his own situation, know that he had to do something to prevent her from doing it.

\- "Yeah right ! As if I'm going to let you do that !"

 _ **CYCLONE DRILL SPEAR !**_

Daniel formed a long spear of dark air and threw it at Wendy, well decided to prevent her from succeeding, but an obstacle stood on the road of the spear, an obstacle with purple hair. Romeo had put himself in harm way to protect Wendy, finding himself with a spear impaling his stomach. Wendy, seeing that, was ready to rush to the young mage but, seeing the look he was sending her, she swallowed her concern and ended absorbing all of Cherrya's winds and once that was done, her magic peaked all of a sudden and she turned to Daniel, a magic circle appearing at her feet, a tornado forming around the Strizer and the young Dragon Slayer.

 _ **SKY DRAGON GOD'S SECRET ART : …**_

\- "Yeah, no thank you ! I'm off !"

Daniel tried to take off and get away, but he realized that he was kind of literally nailed to the ground and by looking down, he saw that his feet were glued by some orange flames, Romeo smiling in spite of the pain he was feeling from his wounds.

\- "Bastard !"

… _**LIGHT SHATTERING: SKY DRILL !**_

Wendy then unleashed her power, calling upon a more powerful version of her SKY DRILL which rushed towards the Strizer which, being unable to run away, began to gather his own winds but while he got ready to counter-attack, Happy and Charla, in a last effort, threw themselves on the Strizer, striking simultaneously on his 2 temples, the 2 impacts making him lose his concentration and, completely knocked out, was then totally unable to protect himself from the gust which collided with him and send him up to the main square of the city which was reduced to nothing but rubbles by the power of the attack, the Strizer laying in the middle of the ruins, eyes white and completely knocked out. The mages didn't lose a single second and rushed to their young friends, carrying them one by one towards the infirmary to look after them as quickly as possible, Wendy asserting being in a good enough shape to do her job and look after her friends. All were extremely proud of what they had demonstrated and looked forward to letting them know it. After 2 hours of care, the 3 mages and 2 Exceeds were finally all looked after, even if Romeo and Happy had to be bedridden due to some deep wounds. If lights had to be shed on many matters, there was one that was more important for them.

\- " HAPPY ! I AM SO HAPPY TO SEE YOU AGAIN ! " Natsu wept buckets, squeezing Happy in his arms.

\- " AND YOU ARE GOING TO LOSE ME SOON IF YOU SQUEEZE ME SO THIGHTLY ! " Complained the Exceed, now back to his small form, but still wearing a miniature version of the pants he had earlier and also the same bandages on his arms.

\- " AH ! Sorry! "

\- " It doesn't matter, but it was horrible, like I was suffocated by Lucy's breast. "

\- " Why does it always have to come back to me ? " The blonde complained whereas Erza got closer to Happy, arms crossed.

\- " I would like to know, Happy : How did you met Jellal ? And why did you decided to train him ? " Ended the warrior by turning to the blue haired mage who answered on the same tone.

\- " It is a strange and quite long story, in fact. I'm going to tell you. "

 **And here it is ! Happy is back, the young generation showed its ability against one of the Strizers. I hope that you liked it and that you will appreciate the rest of it. See you !**

 **Next time : the encounter of Happy and Jellal. Pouring oil paint on the fire. Kidnapping and confrontation on the volcanic land.**


	13. Chapter 13: Memories and artistic threat

**Hello everybody ! With those first and hot August days, I've come to give you some shade with a new chapter of this Fairy Tail fic, a new chapter which is going to be the discovery of the reason why Jellal came to help Happy, as well as the arrival of a new enemy. But enough talking, let's go.**

 **PS: I'm not owning Fairy Tail in any way.**

 **Chapter 13: Memories and artistic threat.**

Many people were gathered in Fairy Tail's sick bay, either sitting or standing around Jellal and Happy, ready to listen to their explanations on what led to their meeting and the sudden evolution of the blue Exceed, now sitting in one of the beds, his body covered with bandages.

\- " OK. I am going to tell you everything. That began approximately 1 day after Happy came back from Karista. "

/- Flashback, in the morning when Natsu discovered Happy's absence -/

Jellal was walking through a forest about approximately a hundred kilometers away from Magnolia, trying to localize and neutralize a dark guild which went on a rampage in the region for some days now. He was following their track when a magic signature drew his attention from the inside of the forest. Curious, he walked toward this magic signature which was strangely familiar to him. He walked in the middle of the bushes and trees to finally reach a small clearing where he fell on something he was absolutely not ready to witness and made him feel a whole lot of feelings, from surprise to fear, also passing by concern and anxiety. Because in front of him was Happy, spread on the ground face against the ground in front of some kind of puppet made of twig with a target drawn on it, the marionette was also covered with some blood and with scratches which, judging by their size, were from Happy, who was probably also the owner of the blood which flowed on the wooden doll. Jellal walked toward Happy, grabbing him and turning him around, relieved to see that he was sleeping but worried as for the blood which poured of his paws and also sign of tears on his face. Jellal got bandages out of his bag pack and looked after the wounds of the Exceed before taking him with him, not wanting to lose the track of the mages he was pursuing, while knowing that he was going to have to question Happy when he'll wake up.

/-In the evening-/

Happy woke up with difficulty, feeling the heat of a fire nearby, being wrapped up in a blue blanket that he did not recognized, although its smell was somewhat familiar. Waking up totally, he turned his head to a person sitting in front of him on the other side of the fire. The flames hid a large part of his face, but with his blue hair and his scarlet tattoo on the right part of his face, he was easily recognizable.

\- " Jellal ? But what am I doing here. " Wondered Happy, surprised when he saw the former criminal.

\- " Happy. You are finally woken. " Noticed the mage by smiling, his hands joined and elbows on his knees. " I found you sleeping and hurt in the middle of a forest. What happened ? "

\- " But where are we ? " Asked Happy, dodging the question while being truly intrigued by the place where Jellal had based for the night. They were in what looked like some kind of building that was in ruins, with broken furniture almost everywhere, broken walls, holes in the framework but what was the most surprising was that these ruins were clean, meaning they weren't old.

\- " We are in the headquarters of a dark guild that I rendered harmless. " Answered Jellal with a small smile. " But do not try to evade my question. What happened to you ? "

Happy sighed by hanging his head before answering with a small voice.

\- " I ran away. "

Jellal opened big eyes, clearly not expecting this answer which erased his smile as fast as he appeared.

\- " What ? But why ? Tell me, I want to know. "

\- " Well, everything began with those Strizers. " Began Happy, Jellal frowning by hearing the word Strizer and the bitterness in Happy's voice.

\- " Strizers ? What's that ? "

\- " Not what, but which. It's apparently a group of 12 people coming from another world to test us. At least, it's what the one that we have to face at Karista told us. " Jellal nodded silently, remembering having seen the last morning an article in a newspaper talking about the destruction of a restaurant which had appears from nowhere just outside of Karista, thus understanding what happened.

\- " That Strizer told me things which made me question myself, in particular on my capacities. " Continued Happy, his voice quivering on some words which seemed to hurt him the most.

\- " Let me guess. " Cut Jellal, beginning to understand the reasons of the Exceed fugue. " It's about Frosch and Lector new forms and the way Natsu reacted to them ? "

\- "Aye". The cat agreed sadly by remembering those events. " And what the Strizer told me drove the point home. As a result, I decided to train myself to become stronger and be more than just a flying mascot. "

\- " I understand now. " Muttered Jellal his look aimed at the ground before raising his head to look at Happy. " But you didn't have to leave without telling anyone. I am sure that they would have all helped you. "

\- " Or they would have asserted that I didn't need it because I was already nice as I am. No, if I ran away, it is also to show them that I can manage and also to teach Natsu a small lesson. "

\- " Like making him understand that it's not because you say nothing bad that you can't hurt others people ? " Understood Jellal with a small half-smile which made the cat smile too.

\- " Yes, that's it. " Began Happy before suddenly scowling, bitterness visible on his face. " But I feel like I'm not doing any progress and that I can't do it alone. "

Seeing the eyes of the Exceed full to the brim with tears, Jellal had an idea. He balanced the pros and the cons of his idea which was going to be lightyears away from what he was used to. But he was unable to let the poor Exceed alone like that.

\- "Very well. In this case …" Jellal got up, under Happy's confused eyes. "… I'm going to train you. Are you interested ?" This revelation took the young cat by surprise and he end up being frozen in bewilderment.

\- "What ? But …"

\- "Are you in or not. Just knows that you won't be able to go back on your decision. So ?"

Happy remained silent several seconds thinking about the implications which it could have but he left his doubt behind him, wiped his tears and raised his head towards Jellal.

\- "AYE, SIR !"

/- Flashback's end-/

\- "After that, I trainer him day and night, AT HIS DEMAND, calm down …" added Jellal hastily by seeing people getting ready to pummel him for being too harsh on the poor cat, calming their anger. "… I am not a monster, thank you. So as I said, I trained him so he could reach his goal, which was being a real asset for the guild and Natsu, at least as much as Panther and Charla could be for Gajeel and Wendy."

\- "All right, it explains many thing, but I am curious. Why these magics in particular?" Asked Lucy, intrigued by the reasons behind the choice of the magics which Happy has from now on.

\- "Well, the magic of transformation was a base so that I could be useful, by taking a human size." Explained Happy. "Even if I exactly wanted a hybrid appearance which is a mixture of Panther feline one and Charla human one. For claws, I wanted a magic which was good with my fighting style but without it being overly powerful, I didn't want to become a powerhouse. And Claw Magic is one of the simplest to learn, especially for creatures like Exceeds which are basically animals."

\- "At least, it answers our questions. We are going to let you rest now, Happy." Proposed Erza by getting up, imitated by the others, but Happy stopped them.

\- " Wait, I would like to give something to Charla. " He said while searching for something in his bag, under the curious gaze of the present mages and the white Exceed who sighed by shaking her head with her eyes closed.

\- " Happy, if it is another fish, it is even worth getting it out of the … " The rest of her sentence died in her throat when she saw what Happy was handing to her. It was not a fish, but a small flower bouquet, more exactly white lilies, that Charla looked at with big eyes under the surprised looks of the other mages.

\- " I hope that it will be enough to forget all the times I wanted to offer you a fish. Thinking back about it, I realize that it was pretty stupid. " Explained Happy, rubbing the back of his head with his other paw, eyes closed and a cute and slightly unsure smile on his face.

\- " T-Thanks. They are beautiful. " Answered Charla, her cheeks pink by taking the bouquet before following the rest of the mages, not without looking at Happy one last time. Erza looked at the scene with a light smile by turning to Jellal.

\- " Why do I have the feeling that you have something to do with that ? " Wondered the mage with a half-smile which Jellal returned to her, making her blush slightly.

\- " Let's just say that I told myself that a little bit of help in this domain would be useful to him. " He explained before going out of the room with Erza, leaving Natsu alone with his 'son'.

\- " Happy. I'm really sorry for all that I said. I would never hurt you deliberately, you know that. "

\- " I know, but the fact is that you often hurt the others with what you said or do because you don't know what the others are feeling, or even what YOU are feeling. " Explained Happy, wanting to make Natsu understand on what points he had to improve himself. " If you can't manage to understand what you feel for the others and what they feels for you, you will hurt others at one moment. "

\- " But I know what the others are for me. They are all my friends ! " Countered Natsu, arms crossed, without really understanding what Happy wanted to say before heading towards the exit. " I'm going to let with you rest, now. Goodbye ! "

\- " No, wait! " But this last cry from Happy didn't stop Natsu who closed the door behind him, the Exceed sighing in despair. " If only he wasn't so naive. "

/-Later, in the streets of Magnolia-/

Lucy was having a walk in town, the inhabitants all busy working on repairing everything that had been destroyed by the fight between Fairy Tail's youth and Exceed and Daniel, the young Strizer of the sky, which had disappeared like the others without leaving of a single trace, some people saying they witnessed some kind of a shadow which would have swallowed the young man and making him disappeared from the rubbles. This shadow could, according to what the stellar mage knew, be one of the Strizer's work and she hoped that there would be no new attack anytime soon, at least so they could have enough time to recover. Sailing through the various stall of the market, she made her food shopping for the week, letting her eyes wandered and her Canis Minor spirit Plue have a walk, her look falling for example on the fishmonger stall which gave a discount, which made the mage smile, imagining the small blue cat buying his fish before coming to save Charla. Having finished her shopping, she called Plue and decided to walk and to take advantage of the day, in spite of it's rough beginning. She passed in an alley where numerous craftsmen were displaying their works, Plue suddenly throwing himself on one of them, which drew the attention of the young woman which was gob smacked by what she saw. There was nobody, but paintings that were hanging on the wall were sublime. Paintings of landscapes, people and even everyday life objects, painted with vibrating colors which highlighted every details, all of it in a sober style and close to reality which enthralled Lucy.

\- " You like my paintings ? "

Lucy was taken out of her daydreaming daze to turn to the man who had just spoken to her. He was in his 25, a stature identical to Natsu, be it on the height, seeing that he was almost a head taller than her, that for the muscles. He had naturally tanned skin, orange-red hair combed in some kind of reptilian crest and amber eyes which shone like a wildfire. He had a friendly smile, an unlit cigarette between his lips. He wore an open and sleeveless orange quilted hoodie and wore it over a red shirt. He also had ample jeans on held by an orange leather belt and white and red striped sneakers. He also had a kind of wide bracelet, like a sponge strap, but made of metal on which was represented a dragon which seemed to be wrapped around a sword.

\- " They are yours ? " Asked Lucy by gesturing to the paintings.

\- " Yep. I made them all by myself. You want to buy one ? " He asked, making the young woman hesitate, when her eyes got lost on one of the paintings which represented a starry sky, which slightly worried the painter. " Hum. Are you okay ? "

When she turned around and when he saw her eyes becoming wet, he was taken by surprise but Lucy wiped her tears away before answering.

\- " It's nothing. This picture reminded me of my mother. We loved looking at the stars and tried to find constellation when I was a child. She died when I was 10 years old. "

\- " Sorry, my condolences. " The young man just stated before an idea came to him. " Concerning my works, if you want, I can paint a portrait of you. I could even try to pay tribute to your mother there. What does she represented for you, except for starry nights ? "

\- " She was my world. My best friend as much as my mother. And an outstanding mages. She's basically what I want to be " Expressed Lucy with a nostalgic smile, eyes lost in the void.

\- " I see. " Smile the painter by turning to his equipment. " Do you have a photo of her, or an image or something that could helps me to know what she looked like? "

To answer the question, Lucy searched in her bag and stretched out to him a scrap of paper which was a portrait of Layla Heartfilia. The painter took the drawing and looked at it one moment before hanging on it on a blank painting on a wooden easel.

\- " It's a magnificent drawing. " He admitted looking at the drawing with a professional eye. " You made it ? "

\- " No, it's a gift of a friend for my birthday. I described her to him and he made that based on my description. "

\- " That friend of yours is very talented, in any case. " Assessed the painter before pointing at a stool on the other side of the easel. " Well, sit down here, miss … "

\- " Lucy. Heartfilia Lucy. "

\- " Jameson, but you can call me James. Or Jay if you want. " The painter said by lighting the cigarette he had in his mouth. " You doesn't mind if I smoke ? It's an habit of mine to smoke while painting. "

\- " No, not at all. " Answered the mage, by no means bothered by the smoke seeing that she spent most of her time with a pyromaniac.

Without further ado, Lucy took a seat on the stool, Plue on her knees whereas Jameson began to work, from time to time asking Lucy to maintain her position. Everything went on without any problem until Jameson opens without warning his shirt and jacket, thus giving Lucy a good view of his well build upper body, which made slightly blush the stellar mage.

\- " Uh, why are you stripping all of a sudden ? "

\- " Eh ? " Jameson raised his head without understanding what she meant before following the eyes of the blonde towards his open clothes and he understood what disturbed her. " Ah, sorry about that. I tend to do that when I'm concentrating on a painting. I'm sorry. If that bothers you, I can close everything. "

\- " No, it's nothing. I'm used to that in a way. " Answered Lucy by rolling eyes, thinking in of numbers of times or Gray had found himself in boxer shorts without warning(preventing).

\- "If you say so."

The painter get back to work, without any other interruption, at least until somebody decides to ruin the moment. A pink haired somebody who had just turned up without warning, taking the mage and the painter by surprise.

\- " Hey Luce. What are you doing here? "

\- " I could ask you the same question. I thought that you'd stay with Happy to make up for the time you lost. " Lucy asked surprised, wondering why the Dragon Slayer was here.

\- " He … He wanted to rest. So I said to myself that I was going to have a little walk and I found you by chance. " Explained Natsu, under the suspicious looks of Lucy who couldn't imagine Natsu, even during a stroll, ending in the district of the artists precisely when she is also there.

\- " Yeah, or you just smelled your way up to me, admit it. " Accused Lucy and judging by the reaction of Natsu, the wide open eyes and a bead of sweat pearling on his temple, she was right.

\- " Not at all. You are weird, Lucy, really. " denied Natsu, Lucy looking at him with round eyes, not believing that he had the boldness to tell her that she was weird, in spite of the situation. When the eyes of Natsu finally settled on Jameson, he scowled. " And what are you ? "

\- " It is not already obvious enough ? " Answered Jameson by stretching his arms towards his brushes and paintings on the walls and tables around him. " I am a painter and the young lady here is my model. "

\- " And what the hell are you doing half naked ? Are you an exhibitionist besides being an artist ? " countered Natsu, with an acidity in his voice that took Lucy by surprise but who did not impress the painter who answered with the same kind of curtesy.

\- " Would it be too much of a pain in the ass to be at least a little polite, pink flamingo ? And you aren't the better placed to make this kind of remark. " replied the young man by pointing at Natsu's open jacket that let his abs and torso visible too.

\- " Except that I don't really like exhibitionist like you, especially when he forces other people to witness it. "

\- " WELL, THAT'S ENOUGH! " Roared the mage girl by standing up suddenly to come and stood in front of Natsu, clearly pissed off. " Natsu, you stop that right now ! "

\- " What ? Why are you defending this guy ? " The fire mage said, indignant, by pointing at Jameson.

\- "Don't point at me, cotton candy head." Said Jameson, no one really noticing him.

\- " This 'guy' asked me if that bothered me if he opened his jacket because that helps him to concentrate, which I answered that it didn't. He, at least, asks before making something who could be disturbing or ill-at-ease, like for example breaking in a girl's apartment to surprise her when she got out of the shower. " Accused Lucy.

\- " Wait. Don't tell me that you still hold that against me ? It's not that bad, really. " Complained Natsu, not understanding why Lucy was still blocked on this story, although the words Happy had returned to him, in particular something about taking into account what the others are feeling. But he did not take it seriously.

\- " Wait. You really did that ? Man, do you know what respect is, at least ? " Commented Jameson with wide eyes.

\- " Shut up, you dick ! No one cares about your meaningless drawings ! " barked Natsu who, for an unknown reason, couldn't support that guy.

\- "If you had a minimum of consideration for others, you would have asked the questions who shall have allowed you to know that this 'meaningless' drawing is a tribute to her dead mother. " Natsu's eyes suddenly opened widely before he turn his head to Lucy, now looking furious AND hurt.

\- " You see, THAT is your problem, Natsu ! " Roared Lucy by raising her voice. " You have no consideration for what the others think and feel. Thus you do what you want without thinking that it could hurt other people. So now, leave immediately and leaves us alone ! " She punctuated her sentence by pushing Natsu away who, shocked by what she said, left but not without giving a dark gaze at Jameson who send it back to him before returning to his painting.

\- " He isn't not nice, this guy. What a jerk. " said Jameson bringing the finishing touches to his work.

\- " He has his qualities. But he has no consideration. If he was not that naïve about emotions, he would be … uh … " Lucy had a hard time finishing her sentence, even beginning to blush and Jameson, seeing that, smiled and completed the sentence without raising his head off from his painting.

\- " Perfect ? " Jameson thought he hit the point, but Lucy's sigh made him have doubts.

\- " I don't know anymore. I don't know where I am about that now. "

\- " I see. " He simply answered before going away from his picture. " Here we are ! It's finished ! "

He removed the painting from the easel, giving back the Layla's drawing to Lucy and showed her the painting. It was Lucy's portrait, standing in the center of a plain, with in the background a sky filled with constellation with Layla, who seemed to float in the middle of the stars, looking at her daughter like a guardian angel. Lucy took the painting in her hands, with tears in her eyes.

\- " It is beautiful. " She simply stated, eyes fixated on the face of her mother who seemed more than real. " I don't know what to say. Thank you. "

\- " It's nothing. The pleasure's all mine " He answered before beginning to search in the pile of painting next to him. " By the way, I would like your opinion on this one painting. It is supposed to carry a message. I would like to know if the message is understandable. "

\- " Yes. With pleasure. " Answered Lucy by taking the painting Jameson was handing out to her and looked at it. In a matter of only a few seconds, she lost her smile, replaced by a mixture of incomprehension and fear. " What the hell does that mean ? What is that ? "

\- " I deduct from your reaction that the message is understandable. Then they shouldn't have too much trouble to understand it at Fairy Tail. " Concluded Jameson by sitting down back to front on a chair, his lit cigarette between his fingers. Lucy frowned and leaped up, taking a fighting position, one of her key in her hands, sending Plue back in his home world.

\- " I don't know what you want, but I'm not going to let with you make. " She threatened but just as she had stopped uttering her threat, she began staggering, feeling dizzy. " What ? What's happening to me ? "

\- " The problem with some paints is that they emit vapors which can be harmful for a human being. Sorry, but I'm afraid that you may have inhale a little too much of those vapor to fight, now. " Lucy had remained conscious just long enough to listen to Jameson explanation before losing consciousness and falling to the ground, Jameson getting up and walking up to her. But a light blinded him and when it died down, he saw Leo holding the mage in his arms and running away.

\- " Don't be afraid Lucy, I am going to take you to the others, you have nothing to fear any… "

*FWOOOOSH*

\- " AAAAAAAHHHHH! "

Leo collapsed on the ground, brought down by an attack which had struck him in the back. Jameson, his hand covered with a red aura approached Lucy, grabbed her and placed her on his shoulder before turning to Leo, a bad smile on his lips.

\- "I didn't expect you to come like that, spirit of the Lion, but I have to say it's not that bad. I needed a messenger." His red hand approached the spirit, which was unable to make anything besides suffering.

/- A little while later at the guild -/

Natsu was sitting at the bar, his face strained by anger, but also incomprehension and doubt, which intrigued the others a lot. Gray, sighing, got up from the table where he sat with Juvia and went to his best friend, sitting down next to him.

\- "You doesn't seem like your usual self, matchstick, and I'm not talking about the same kind as you were when Happy disappeared. Something happened or what ? I thought that you would get better with the return of Happy."

\- "And that's the case. I don't see why that would bother you, ice queen." Countered Natsu, clearly not feeling like talking.

\- "I think that it has to do with Lucy, right ?" Threw Mirajane, a smile on her lips by knowing all well that she was right, which made Natsu sigh.

\- "I saw her in town serving as a model to a dumbass painter. She send me packing once again. She even took the defense of this guy."

\- "I don't have all the elements, but I am sure that she had good reasons for putting the blame on you. And hearing you talk like that, it's making me think that you are just jealous that he is spending time with her." Pricked Gray with a derisive smile, what earned him a dark gaze from the fire mage.

\- "I AM NOT JEALOUS OF THIS GUY ! AND GO FIND YOUR CLOTHES BACK, YOU COLD PRICK !" Countered Natsu before Gray run away in search of his disappeared clothes. "And also, jealousy or not, I felt something wrong with that guy." His last sentence chilled the air around the bar, all thinking that a Dragon Slayer instinct wasn't something to be taken lightly, and it was confirmed immediately.

That's when the door of the guild opened, Leo bursting through it, his suit burned in the back and covered with burns. He held in his hand a rectangle covered with some kind of fabric. But the most disturbing thing was that he had with him the Lucy's whip and key ring.

\- "Leo ! What happened to you ?" worried Wendy by approaching Leo

\- "It's nothing. I'll heal myself by going back into the stellar spirit world. But this guy let me come to give you that."

He threw the wooden panel which slid on the ground to Natsu, who picked it up and looked at it with Makarov and the other mages who had grouped together around him, all shared between fear and anger.

It was a picture which represented a volcanic landscape. Lucy, wearing a princess's dress, was like crucified to some sort of a wall of red rocks, looking with eyes filled with tears at the show which offered itself to her, which was a young man with orange-red hair and amber eyes which had just plunged a long sword in the side of a dragon which was basically a clone of Igneel but with a pink crest and wings, the same pink as Natsu's hair. The mages didn't need a long time to understand that this painting was a threat.

\- "Where is he?" Asked Natsu, looking pissed

\- "He told me that he would be at mount Drastam. He said he wanted to make his work live and that he will not like any unnecessary characters." Answered the Lion by sitting down with difficulty. Natsu, from his part, raised his head, gave the picture to Makarov and went towards the exit.

\- "Hey, where do you think you're going ?" Questioned Gray already knowing the answer. "If you go to fight him, we are coming with you."

\- " No, I'm going there alone. He said he wanted to make his picture a reality, so besides himself, he need a fair princess and a dragon with a pink crest. I think that the message is rather clear. "

\- " However surprising as it can be, he is right. " Approved Makarov, although surprised that Natsu can have such a logic. " But you will never reached mount Drastam in time. " Natsu agreed and turned to Sting who was standing next to the bar.

\- " Yo, Sting. Can I borrow Lector for the journey ? "

\- " Yeah, no problem. Lector ! " Sting accepted and called his friend who appeared and went to the fire mage who had just collected Lucy's whip and keys.

\- " Hang on, Luce. I'm coming. "

/- Much later -/

Natsu and Lector finally arrived at mount Drastam, an active volcano whose successive eruptions had changed the surrounding landscape to a desert of stone and dead plants. On the side of a plain, stuck to the side of the volcano was Lucy, attached to a wall, in a position of crucifixion which made fury rise in the body of the Dragon Slayer. A fury which still rose when he saw Jameson walking out from behind a rock, a sword hanging on his belt.

\- " Here you are at last. And you are not alone. It's a pity, I am well afraid that it will force me to hurt the princess. " Threatened the painter, Natsu immediately understanding the message.

\- " Lector, go back to the guild. "

\- " But … "

\- " GO BACK ! I'll be okay. "

Lector let his eyes switch between the mage and his opponent for several seconds before deciding to leave, leaving the 2 young men alone.

\- "Good. Now, we are going to be give life to my piece of work. Just know that I called it ' A dragon's end '."

\- "The only thing which is going to end here is your bullshit, false Reedus!" Countered Natsu, Jameson almost face-faulting facing the stupidity of this insult. But he resumed.

\- "Well, doesn't matter. I did not introduced myself to you. I am …"

\- "A Strizer." Interrupted Natsu. "It doesn't take a rocket scientist to get that point seeing the situation. And since your buddy the cook said that your powers were all based around a 'domain', seeing where we are, I can guess what kind of power you have."

\- "Well. It seems like the cotton candy isn't as dumb as he looked." Jameson laughed with a smile. "But indeed, I am a Strizer. Jameson Freeman, Strizer of the volcano." He announced proudly just as the volcano behind him exploded. "And as painter and warrior, I'm going to make my masterpiece out of your defeat."

 **Watch out, this fight is going to be hot !**

… **.**

 **Sorry for that, nevertheless I hope that you will like this chapter and that the fight in the next chapter will also please you.**

 **Before closing this chapter, I would want to warn you that between the August 18th and 25th, I going to be on holidays and so unable to draw anything. The week before, I'll begin the French version of my new One Piece fanfiction and, if I can, the translation of this chapter in English, although this will certainly have to wait for the weekend of my return. All this to tell you that there will be a gap of a week in my usual rhythm, I hope that you will forgive him me. The next FT chapter will be published the 31/08 or 01/09. See you soon.**

 **Next time: confrontation in volcanic field. The secret of managing the feelings. The teaching of a painter and the feelings of a dragon.**


	14. Chapter 14 : Volcanic feelings

**Hello everybody ! I know that I'm late regarding my usual schedule, I have one week of delay but as I explained in chapter 13, I was away for holyday which explains this gap in the schedule. But now, I can go back on my usual rhythm with this 14th chapter of this Fairy Tail fic, with a fight between fire user.**

 **I don't own the rights for Fairy Tail, everything belongs to the holders said rights with the exception of my OCs**

 **Let's go !**

 **Chapter 14: Volcanic feelings**

A sun high in the sky hot enough to burn skin, a mountain of red stone from where poured a river of magma which moved slowly on the side of the mountain, a stony landscape destroyed by the heat and the total absence of humidity which made dehydration something more dangerous that the lava itself. Basically, not the ideal place to go on a holiday.

For a fight, on the other hand …

 _ **FIRE DRAGON'S IRON FIST !**_

 _ **BURNING KNUCKLES !**_

The already scorching temperature suddenly grew up several degrees just as two fists covered with flames collided. Their owner, a young man with spiky pink colored hair, oops forgive me, SALMON colored hair, and another one with orange-red hair combed in a big reptilian crest, their faces deformed by their concentration, the first one determined to destroy his opponent for kidnapping his friend, and the second was thinking, surveying his opponent. They took some steps back to gauge each other again, Natsu putting his fist ablaze ready to go back to the fight, that had begun a few minutes ago, at least until his opponent asks a rather strange question.

\- " What do you want to save her from ? " Asked Jameson by pointing at Lucy, who was still 'crucified' in one of the stone not far away, unconscious.

Natsu's flames went out whereas his eyes suddenly opened widely, his body almost face faulting, completely taken by surprise by this question that came out of nowhere and which, to him, was completely stupid.

\- " Are you stupid or what ? I'm saving her from you. Use your head, dumbass. "

\- " It's the pot calling the kettle black. " Countered Jameson, apparently not convinced by the Dragon Slayer answer. " I did nothing wrong to her now, did I ? "

\- " She is my partner, one of my guildmate. A friend. I'm not letting her down. "

 _ **BURSTING ROPE !**_

Natsu didn't had time to prevent a strange red rope from wrapping around his head, precisely over his mouth, a rope which exploded shortly after, sending him to the ground writhing in pain after feeling his tongue so close from exploding.

\- " It's normal to be friend with the members of his guild seeing what you are all getting through. " Began Jameson. " But I forbid you to even think that the friendship there is between you and Warren is the same that the one that there is between you and Gray, for example. "

\- " I may spend more time with Gray than Warren but they are both friends. Even if it make me want to puke to say that of ice cube. " Answered Natsu while getting up. " And why does that concern you ? You're not my father. "

\- " There is a reason why I tried to get you here alone. It's because when we investigated into you, I saw myself in you. Somebody who hurts the others because he is unable to know exactly what he is feeling. So I'm going to teach you that well mastered feelings gives a lot of power. That way, if you manage to survive this fight, you will have learnt something. "

\- " SHUT THE FUCK UP ! "

 _ **FIRE DRAGON'S ROAR !**_

Natsu, not being able to hear any more of that guy bullshit, shut him up by unleashing the power of his roar, but Jameson didn't move, putting a hand to the hilt of his sword which he had at his waist.

 _ **FLAME SLICING EDGE !**_

He raised his sword over his head and brought it down on the torrent of flame which rushed at him, splitting it in two, the breath being put out shortly after.

\- " My turn, now. " Began Jameson, inhaling the smoke of his cigarette while sheathing back his sword, Natsu chuckling at that.

\- " Go for it. Send your flames. I'm kinda hungry. "

\- " I am the volcano, pink flamingo. " Countered Jameson who began to be slightly annoyed by Natsu, a viscous liquid oozing from his hands. " And until proved otherwise, a volcano spit no flames. "

 _ **MAGMA TWISTER WAVE !**_

Joining his hands in front of him, he threw a swirling torrent of magma at his opponent who was forced to dodge, his foot receiving some drops of lava, which was enough for Natsu to suffer like his feet had been cut off.

\- " Well, I am disappointed. I did not expect the famous Salamander to be such a disappointment in a fight. " mocked Jameson hands in pockets, Natsu recovering from his burn on its foot.

\- " You are starting to get on my nerve. " Natsu where starting to feel his wrath boiling up. " I am going to demolish you quickly and save Luce. "

\- " Save her from what ? " Countered Jameson, having a lot of fun driving the mage mad. " She is not hurt, she is not in immediate danger, she underwent no violence. It's as if you are looking for a pretext to play the knights in shining armor. Rather ironic for a dragon. "

\- " Fuck off. You are making me mad with those half assed sentences. "

\- " And that's exactly the point. If they make you react, it's because there is a part of the truth inside which disturbs you. " Growled Jameson who was starting to be fed up with the stubbornness of that guy.

\- " AND WHAT TRUTH ?! COME ON, TELL ME ! "

\- " THAT YOU LOVE LUCY, YOU ASH FOR BRAIN ! " Roared the Strizer by consuming what remained of its cigarette all at once. This sentence had gone out of nowhere, something he clearly had not planned but he had no other choices. He quickly understood that Natsu needed some kind of electro shock to start thinking about this kind of thing.

And this sentence had the expected effect because it was all that it took to put Natsu out immediately, the Salamander completely shocked, not knowing what to think of that. For him, it was only bullshit but a part of him seemed to wake up, as if it had been buried for years and could finally make his voice heard.

\- " What the hell are you saying ? " Asked Natsu, completely lost. " I'm not in love with Lucy. And you have nothing to prove the contrary. "

\- " Well first, I noticed that she is the only woman of the guild for whom you have a nickname. A very affective one, I must say. "

\- " It doesn't mean anything. "

\- " If that was the only thing, yes. But I have much better." Jameson kept on. " YOU are always there to protect her, YOU made her join the guild, YOU swore to protect her future. And if that is still not enough for you, I would even go so far as to say that you are bound by fate. "

\- " What ? In what ? " Now, Natsu was really lost. He didn't see in what they were bound by things like fate, even if a part of him where accepting that.

\- " Let me explain. " Proposed Jameson before beginning to enumerate the proofs. " You were born 400 years ago and it is Anna, Lucy's ancestor, who was your teacher, to you and the other Dragons Slayer. It is also her who opened the Eclipse Door to send you to the future and it's one of her descendant, Layla Heartfilia, Lucy's mother, who opened the door in this 7th July 777. And it is you who makes Lucy come to Fairy Tail, offering her a new family. Everything that you lived together, to the moment when she risked her life to rewrite the book of END to cut the link between you, Zeref and the book, allowing you to survive. If it's not enough, I don't know what could convince you. "

Jameson put a new cigarette in his mouth, looking satisfied with his explanation but Natsu was still in conflict with himself, as if he refused the reality.

\- " I'm sorry, but it's rubbish. " Began Natsu while getting up, which didn't really pleased Jameson. "First, this stories of fate, I don't believe in shit like that. I build MY own life. " A tick mark appear on Jameson's forehead. " Then, let us admit that I feel more that friendship for her, it would be more as a sister. " a second tick mark. " And then, I have no need for anything else than my fury to beat your ass. " Third tick mark, JACKPOT !

\- " RAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH ! "

Jameson suddenly roared at the same time as the volcano exploded in the background and the explosion of the ground around the Strizer, spurts of flames and lava splashing all that was nearby. Natsu took a step back, surprised by such a rise of power.

\- " YOU REACHED MY ULTIMATE LIMIT , MATCH STICK ! I THOUGHT THAT YOU WOULD AT LEAST SMART ENOUGH TO UNDERSTAND THE MESSAGE A MINIMUM, BUT IT MUST BE NOTED THAT WITH YOU, I'LL HAVE TO USE THE HARD WAY ! "

On these words, he pushed his sword in the ground, some magma springing from the cracks appearing around the blade.

 _ **VOLCANIC FORGE : MAGMA BLADE ERUPTIVE SLASH !**_

He then took his blade out of the ground, creating a long projection of magma which splashed Natsu. But the most impressive thing was the immense blade which Jameson was brandishing towards the sky, a blade covered with lava that he then swung down, sandwiching the mage between 2 projections of magma, his pained cry ringing all over the mountain.

And reaching the ears of a blonde mage, whose eyelids fluttered before slowly opening, her readjusting to the ambient light. After this little period of adaptation, she realized her situation: chained to a stone wall, in front of a field destroyed by flames, his pink haired partner writhing in pain in front of Jameson, who had just turned his head to her.

\- " Well, well. The princess is finally waking up. " Stated Jameson, the mage glaring at him.

\- " YOU ! When I think that I took your side against Natsu back at Magnolia. What do you want ? "

\- " The same thing as the other Strizer. To test you. And I am currently teaching a lesson to Flame Boy. And the least we can say … "

 _ **FIRE DRAGON'S SWORD HORN !**_

Jameson was interrupted by Natsu, who struck him in his lower back like a missile, head first, sending him crash in a stone spike some meters away.

\- "… Is that he is one hell of a difficult pupil." Resumed Jameson by getting up, his anger shooting up.

\- "Now, I hope that you're going to fight more seriously. I'm starting to be fed up with you talking like a gossip girl." Threatened Natsu by igniting before throwing himself on Jameson once again.

 _ **FIRE DRAGON'S IRON FIST !**_

The burning fist approached Jameson but while he still had some centimeters left before reaching its target, Jameson covered himself with flames too and Natsu's fist was blocked suddenly, as if it had collided with a wall which had absorbed the attack. Natsu didn't understand what had happened before Jameson came with an answer.

\- "Well, having a hard time ? It's not surprising. My anger make my flames so powerful and violent that they are much denser than normal flames. Your flames won't get through them, not as long as they are that weak at least."

 _ **EXPLOSIVE VOLCANO GEYSER !**_

The ground under Natsu began to swell and crack, the Dragon Slayer getting out of the way just as the ground exploded like a volcano, throwing a column of lava towards the sky. Lucy, from her part, struggled more and more to try to release herself from her binds, not supporting the view of her friend being manhandled like that, her will to fight growing after she had seen her whip and her keys fall from Natsu's back pocket which had been destroyed during his dodging. But she could do nothing. From his part Jameson could see in Natsu's eyes 2 different sparks. The first one was a conflicted one, proof that the words he said did have en effect, Natsu's brain working at full speed to try to make sense out of everything that guy had said. The other spark was one we usually have when we just thought of an idea. Jameson had a hard time understanding what it could be when suddenly, lightning appear in the flames of the mage who inspired deeply, feeling his lungs with air.

 _ **LIGHTNING FIRE DRAGON'S ROAR !**_

A small memory lapse prevented Jameson from understanding quickly enough what was happening but when he did, it was too late. He was struck quite hard by the attack and if the flames of the pinkette had been weakened by his own fire, they remained powerful enough to cross his barrier and that was without taking into account the lightning bolt which had not been weakened, striking him at full power. Jameson was torn away from the ground by the attack and was sent approximately 100 meters back while an explosion of fire and lightning shook all the mountain. Taking advantage of this moment of calm, Natsu rushed at Lucy, breaking the stone and releasing her from her binds, the blonde still having what was left of the handcuffs to her wrists and ankles.

\- " Luce, are you ok ? " Natsu worried by examining the blonde. " He hasn't done anything to you, at least ? "

\- " No, nothing. " Answered the blonde, checking herself out too that to see if she had no hidden wounds. " It would seem like he told the truth when he said he did nothing to me. "

\- " And alas for you, it will quickly change. "

 _ **VOLCANIC BOMB RAIN !**_

Natsu and Lucy hardly had time to turn their head to the voice which had uttered the threat that a shower of bowling sized fire covered stone fell from the sky straight on both mages, which tried to evade with great difficulty, suffering heavy damages. By getting up, they saw Jameson standing not far away, his body covered with superficial burns and still going strong. He seemed like he was more than angered, like the flames and lava swirling around him indicated.

\- " Well done, cotton candy. " congratulated Jameson, irony heavy in his voice. " I told you that she wasn't in any danger, but your stubbornness, absolutely wanting to save her, is what will put her in danger. "

He moved toward Lucy, whom he lifted by the back of her collar and dragged towards a small stone platform in the center of a crater. He put her on it and used his flames to weld the rests of the handcuffs together, attaching her wrists together before doing the same with her ankles. Then, he filled the crater with magma, the platform floating with difficulty on the surface of the small lake.

\- " Here. Now, she is stuck on a small rock floating in the middle of the lava, restrained so she won't be able to get out of here. Which would have never arrived if you had listened to what I told you. "

Natsu remained awestruck, grinding his teeth, forced to admit that Jameson was right. He had more and more difficulty to push away the words of Jameson and this small voice in him who welcomed with opened arm those revelations like they were god sent. He then exploded, letting his flames and lightning spring from his body in a maelstrom of chaotic power reflecting his current state of mind. In the face of that, Jameson seemed almost satisfied. And much to Natsu's surprise, his strength seemed to dissipate suddenly, as if his anger had disappeared.

\- " I see. You're so impressed that you know it's over for you, isn't it ? " provoked Natsu. " In this case, let me finish it ! "

 _ **LIGHTNING FIRE DRAGON'S FIRING HAMMER !**_

Natsu covered one of his forearm with flames and lightning which he brought down with all of his strength on Jameson, the shockwave cracking the ground and sending gusts of air in every direction, but something unexpected happened, something that was almost scaring Natsu. The Strizer had caught Natsu's arm effortlessly, by no means bothered by the heat of the fire and lightning mix, although they were slightly burning the palm of his hand.

\- " Do you know what's worse than an angry man ? " Questioned Jameson without letting go of the arm, the Dragon Slayer sweating heavily, clearly ill-at-ease, we could even say frightened. " A man who control it. "

 _ **BLAZING LASER !**_

He pointed two fingers at Natsu and shot a concentrated beam of flames which pierced the shoulder of the mage, tearing away from him a pained cry and pushing him back a few meters away.

\- "Feelings are like flames." Began the redhead by watching Natsu getting up with difficulty. "The bigger they are, the more powerful they are. But as they are growing, they began to represent a threat to everyone, destroying everything on their wake. And what you have just done is a proof of that. Look." He pointed to the right and by following his finger, Natsu was paralyzed.

The stone on which Lucy was rocked dangerously on the surface of the small lake of lava, the blonde suffering because some magma drops had splashed her thighs.

\- "Your attack was led by your anger towards me. It was powerful but the shockwave created waves of lava which almost made Lucy take one hell of a hot bath." With each words, Natsu was shrinking more and more, the realization hitting him as hard as a ton of bricks. "Yes, Natsu. She would have die by your fault because you don't pay attention to those who are around you nor in what you feel. You are a danger."

Natsu seemed brain dead. He wasn't moving anymore, eyes lost in his own reflection and this was hurting Lucy who looked desperately for a way to save her best friend. Jameson, on the other hand, had not finished his verbal torment.

\- " I know what you're feeling, you know. Long ago, like you I had no control over my feelings, in particular my anger, and I made a lot of people suffer because of that. Feelings, in the same way as flames, are dangerous but if you know how to control them, we can then call on to their full potential. You thought I let my guard down, but my anger was still here, but it was focused cause I controlled it, hence why you couldn't felt it. Sorry to tell you that, but you have no chance against me. It is over. "

Natsu was still not moving, he had heard Jameson but remained totally silent, motionless, as dead. Refusals and stubbornness were over, he literally was seeing the movie of his life, everything and he noticed details that he didn't saw at the time. All those times when he had hurt his close friends because he was not paying attention to the others were now obvious to him. Remorse flooding him, along with doubt and constant questioning, he got to the point where he even forgot the fight, looking at his opponent for answer.

\- " I … I hurt them that much ? "

\- " Not that much. I have exaggerated it little to force you to go out of your shell. But your lack of consideration is at the origin of numerous small problems. As for example, getting in a girl's house without being invited to fall asleep in her bed, while she is in it. It's not something normal people do, even between friends. I know girls who can be particularly violent regarding this. And I know what I'm talking about since a girl I know really well was about to fill my ass with glass shards because I fell asleep by mistake in her bed while I was drunk. " Added Jameson without knowing why, wriggling by remembering the painful memory who would have been a lot worse if nobody had come to his rescue.

Natsu grimaced without being aware of it by imagining the scene, while remembering himself of all the times when he had literally broken into Lucy's private life by inviting himself in her home just like that. Returning to the feelings, he still had a hard time thinking that they can have such an impact.

\- " Those feelings … They are as powerful as that ? " Asked Natsu, still motionless.

\- " Of course they are him. " Calmly answered Jameson by lighting a nth cigarette. " The feelings, no matter which one, are powerful inhibitor which multiplied tenfold what people can do. I saw mothers lifted cars by themselves alone to save their children. People can move mountains and realize the impossible for love or even for friendship. For example, in my world, a young man without any experience in mountain climbing went to climb the highest summit of my world just for the love of a woman. And in the same way, under the influence of anger, jealousy, people destroyed whole lives, theirs or that of the others. And you, it's always feelings like the friendship that you feel for your friends, your attachment to your guild, the hatred felt to those who threatens your close friends, it is these feelings that allowed you to surpass all the obstacles, even the most insuperable. As for example, the anger that you let explode in front of Erigor from Eisenwald allowed your flames to remove suck his Storm Mail up. You have these feelings in you, but you can't put a name on it and as long as that will be the case, you will always have the risk of hurting the others. It's also for that that I did everything to face you. I've been in your place, making close friends suffer because I did not control them. Given that you know flames better than anyone, I knew that you would understand if I made an analogy between both. " He paused then began smiling with a haughty look. " But having said that, whether you realize it or not, it will not change the fact that I won. "

Natsu was now deep into his own world, drowned under all those information but it did not stop those last words from making him raise his head, not understanding in what the fight, that he had forgotten with all that, was finished.

\- " What are you talking about ? "

\- " If you want to have a chance to beat me, it would be necessary for you to use your full power, even if I doubt that it would enough, but let us say that it would be. If you do it, it will put Lucy in danger because you cannot control your power enough to prevent it from hurting her. And because you do not want to hurt her, you will never reach the level of power needed to beat me. So I've won. "

Natsu began thinking, trying to find a way to beat the dude, without putting Lucy in danger. He might be saying to himself that she wouldn't be that much in danger, but there was still a doubt that was there. He had no solution. For the first time in his life, Natsu was almost sure he had no way to win.

\- "If I have to stay there, swear not to attack Lucy. "

\- " It is strangely noble from you, but don't worry, I didn't plan on attacking her. Now, farewell, dragon. "

Jameson raised his sword over his head, Natsu on his knees, totally resigned but if he could save Lucy like that, he didn't mind. Her life came before the rest. He thought of everybody at the guild, his eyes filling with tears, a fact rare enough to be underlined.

 _Everybody. Mira, Cana, Wendy, Romeo, Gajeel, Levy, Laxus, Master, Juvia, Gray, Erza, … Happy. Lucy … I am sorry._

His head lowered, tears flowing down his face, he waited to feel the blade pierced his flesh and to put an end to his life.

But as Jameson got ready to bring down his sword, some kind of blue magic rope wrapped around his wrist, preventing him from proceeding to the execution.

\- "What the…?"

He did not have time to understand what was happening that he felt himself getting send into the air and being thrown to the ground several meters away. But he did not have time to get over the commotion.

 _ **SHOOTING STAR CANNON !**_

Jameson raised his head just enough to see an enormous arrow of green light arriving towards him at a crazy speed, arrows which exploded like a cannonball when it reached him, throwing him even farther, tattering his clothes and blood trickling down from his lips. By looking at it closely, he saw Lucy standing in front of Natsu, wearing her Sagittarius Star Dress, her bow pointed at the Strizer, eyes red with unshed tears.

\- "Luce ? But how did you get out of this crater ?" Wondered Natsu before putting his eyes on Lucy's hands, eyes filling with surprise.

Lucy's hands were as red as crawfish and covered with big blisters and it was the same for her feet and there was nothing left of the handcuffs. Natsu didn't understood how she had been able to free herself, but Jameson answered it for him.

\- "She plunged her hands into the lava to melt the chains ?! She didn't even made a single noise !" He exclaimed stunned that she could pull a trick like this one, Natsu entering the same state of shock by understanding the pain which she had to endure for that.

\- " But why did you do that ? " Natsu wondered, not understanding why she would go hurt herself like that and her answer was not the one he waited for when Lucy turned to him, visibly mad, slapping him strongly, her hand hurting because of it.

\- " WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING, YOU IDIOT ?! " Lucy exclaimed. " What happens to you, seriously ? Staying there, on your knees, waiting for death to come as if you had giving up fighting and living. It's not like you, Natsu. The Natsu I know wouldn't let himself get down like that, he would fight up to the end, even if everything seems lost ! " She calmed down and fell to her knees, grimacing because of her ankles bruised by the lava, taking his face in her hands. " I don't know what he told you but judging by the effect it had on you, those were hard to listen. But whether he is right or wrong, you don't have to give up because of that. Because it's not what our Natsu would do. " She ended with a soft smile, Natsu's focusing on her, forgetting everything else.

 _" How could I have been that oblivious ? "_ The sentence was repeating in his head like a mantra. His heart beating like a jackhammer, he felt his body becoming hotter than usual and by thinking about it, he had always felt this kind of thing when Lucy was close by but he was just too naïve to know what it was about and he put them aside each time. Without counting the many times when he had felt the need to eviscerate other people, especially other guys, who were being too friendly, even too flirty, with her. Because he was jealous. Because he wanted to be the only one to make her smile, to make her happy. Now that he understood all this, he could not deny the fact that the others were right to say he was an imbecile.

Because he had to be one to not notice it before.

He began to laugh lightly, what intrigued Lucy, before raising his head that had slightly lowered.

\- " Yeah. Sorry Luce. And thank you for waking me up. "

\- " No problem. " Answered Lucy with a big smile reflecting Natsu's one, a smile that didn't stay for a very long time in place, disappearing when they heard noises coming from behind them.

 _ **MAGMA STONE CHAINS !**_

Jameson, who had observed the scene from afar, called upon a series of chains made of volcanic rock which crossed the distance separating him from the mages in a blink of eye, winding around Lucy under the eyes of Natsu who looked without moving the body of her friend being pulled back until she end up in front of Jameson, who used her as a human shield.

\- " It's not really my kind to take hostages, but I didn't expect her to intervenes, so I'm going to make an exception. "

Natsu, naturally, got up but for once, he took time to analyze the situation. Jameson was largely hidden behind Lucy, which meant that if he used his full power as he was used, he will hurt her. If he wanted to succeed, he had to evolve and he had to do it now. He concentrated, thinking again about Jameson's word about flames, to control them and now that he knew what he felt, he felt that his power had been multiplied tenfold. After all, as a Dragon Slayer, his flames really did reflect his emotions. He reopened his eyes, and his body covered itself completely with flames in an instant, slightly blinding both observers and when the flames disappeared, they end up out of breath.

In front of them was standing Natsu but not the one that they were used to see. He had entered Dragon Mode, but it had changed a lot. Before, it was basically a scaly Natsu covered with flames. But there, it was not the same. The scales were ruby red and partially covered his arms and his legs, as well as his shoulders, his torso and ribs. His hands, which looked more like claws than something else, were covered with flames, the same kind of flames that formed sorts of wings on his back and horns on his head. The eyes had turned yellow with reptilian pupils, his teeth had become more sharpened and even his hair had grown to end up as long as when he had appeared at the Great Magic Games after one year of training (A.N. : I'm sure you know what I'm talking about). He inspired deeply, his mouth filling with flames.

 _ **FIRE DRAGON'S …**_

\- "Wow. I admit that I did not expect that." Admitted Jameson before a grin appear on his face seeing Natsu taking a deep breath. "But if you attack me now, your friend is going take the full strength of the blow, you know ?"

\- "Natsu …" whispered Lucy, a little worried about what was going to happen.

… _**REVISED ROAR !**_

While Jameson and Lucy were expecting the usual roar, this time, it was a concentrated beam of flames that broke out towards them. The attack barely grazed Lucy's right side, the latter feeling almost no heat at all, the attack striking Jameson dead on his belly, throwing him far from Lucy, the belly almost carbonized by the attack. Once the flames disappeared, he got up with difficulty, eyes aimed at Natsu, who had been joined by Lucy.

\- "You said something ?" Asked Natsu, openly mocking the Strizer by picking his ear like nothing happened.

\- "Grrr. OK, if you want to play that game, we are going to be two !" Roars out Jameson by leaving his sword on the ground, igniting completely. In front of him, Lucy and Natsu remained motionless, the two ready to fight.

\- "Lucy". Says Natsu, drawing the attention of the mage. "Together ?"

\- "Together.". Answered the blonde with a smile before they turn their attention back to the Strizer in front of them.

 _ **FIRE BOMB SWARM !**_

 _ **STAR SHOT !**_

On one side, Jameson called a multitude of fireballs which were met with a swarm of bright green arrows, none of the two side getting the upper hand on the other.

\- "You know that it's useless. If that continues, none of us two will reach the target." Warned Jameson, Lucy continuing her shootings without being distracted.

\- "I don't need to hit you. He is here for that."

 _ **FIRE DRAGON'S BRILLIANT FLAME !**_

Natsu appeared just over Jameson, having to take advantage of the fact that he was busy with Lucy to hurl him a hard hit on the top of his skull with his Dragon Mode enhanced Brilliant Flame. Quickly recovering after that, Jameson and Natsu then exchanged fiery blows at a blinding speed, striking mainly the face of their opponents. But Jameson, although busy with Natsu, tried to see what Lucy was doing. But Natsu prevented him from doing so. When the exchanges came to an end, Natsu quickly went away and before he had time to understand no anything, Jameson was almost drown on the spot by a gigantic whirlwind of water which succeeded in putting out his flames and send him to the floor. By raising his eyes towards the origin of the attack, he was surprised to see Juvia beside Lucy in her Star Dress Aquarius who had just executed the Unison Raid which they had used in the Tower of the Paradise. While he got up, Jameson saw Juvia disappear in a cloud of smoke, revealing the two Gemini's spirit who disappeared at the same time as Lucy's Star Dress.

 _ **OPEN, GATE OF THE SCORPION : SCORPIO !**_

 _ **STAR DRESS SCORPIO !**_

Now accompanied by the spirit of the scorpion and wearing the corresponding clothes, Lucy threw a new offensive. But first, her spirit had to set the ground.

 _ **SAND BUSTER !**_

Scorpio threw a swirl of sand on Jameson, literally swallowing the Strizer who, alas, didn't have time to do anything else when Lucy, surfing on the sand, had come to fight Jameson who, between the sand and the water from before, he had a hard time defending against the blonde mage who was a lot stronger than he gave her credit for. And it was not finished.

 _ **DRAGON SLAYER SECRET ARTS: CRIMSON LOTUS - EXPLODING FLAME BLADE**_

While the sand was still dancing around him, Jameson was hit by an enormous burst of swirling flames which propelled him towards the sky and, totally drowsy, he was not able to prevent his flight and his fall. Meanwhile, Lucy and Natsu were standing side by side, their magics beginning to merge together.

 _ **UNISON RAID : FIRE STAR SUPERNOVA !**_

Combining their respective magics, Lucy and Natsu called upon a gigantic bomb of light and flames which rushed at Jameson who had still not landed and was swallowed mid-fall by the sphere which exploded without any further ado, creating a gigantic crater while cracking the ground on several meters all around it and in the middle of the hole was Jameson, his body calcined and smoking.

Lucy and Natsu let themselves fall on the ground, exhausted by the fight. They were getting their breath back under control when Natsu felt something on his shoulder. Turning his head, he saw that Lucy had fallen asleep on him. Looking at the beautiful blonde and thinking again about everything he had learn during this fight, he let a smile escape him and went to replace a lock of her blonde hair behind her ear, swearing to became better at managing his feelings, at least for her.

 **So... First, I hope that you liked this chapter. Next, I felt like it kinda get out of control in the end, as if I let my fingers type without even thinking. I wanted this chapter to act as a trigger for Natsu, to be able to develop a little the character afterward, in particular on his interpersonal skills with the others, and mainly Lucy, now that he knows what these feelings are worth. And if I chose this Strizer for that, it's to be able to make a parallel between feelings and flames, something that Natsu understands. Not my best chapter, I admits it, and I apologize if it's not as good as the others. If you have any remarks, don't hesitate to tell me. See you !**

 **I'm also thinking about changing my rhythm. I'll still try to post at least a chapter every 7 days max, but I'll basically write whenever I'll feel like it as to not force myself in doing things I don't want just to publish in time. But I'll try to do the chapters in within a week and, let's say, 1 week and a half at the maximum.**

 **Next time: Natsu meet his advisor. A 'new' Natsu Lucy can't handle. Mission in Fiore's Far West.**


	15. Chapter 15 : Homecoming and changes

**And here we are again for the continuation of our Fairy Tail fanfic, with a return to Magnolia, meetings, changes of attitudes and a need to have a break. I hope that this will please you.**

 **Let's not waste any more time and let's go !**

 **Ah, and I am not the holder of the rights of Fairy Tail, only my OCs belongs to me.**

 **Chapter 15: Homecoming and changes**

If someone had told him that one day he would take the train willingly by himself, he would never have believed it.

But this is exactly what was happening to Natsu right now. After defeating the fire Strizer Jameson with Lucy's help, he had to find alone a way to go back home because the transport he used to come, in this particular case Lector, had returned to the guild after he had led him here. DO he had to reach the closest city while carrying a still sleeping Lucy, the latter exhausted by the fight. He had walked during approximately 3 hours with the sun heating his skin before finally reaching Drastara, a thermal city known for its volcano heated hot springs situated in hillside, at the end of the day. Not wanting to lose any more time, worried by the burns Lucy had on her hands and feet, he had to, alas for him, go to the only way which he had to return as quickly as possible to Magnolia : the city's train station.

Naturally, he was assaulted by nausea just as he had put a foot aboard what was for him a real torture device. But for Lucy's wellbeing, he gathered his strengths to try to hold on and went to one of the cabins, lengthening Lucy on one of them, putting the head of the blonde on his knees, as she was used to do to calm his nausea. But he was in the worst shape possible and that only got worse when he felt the train beginning to move.

His face now was of a sickly green shade and he felt like dying, the need to vomit becoming more and more powerful. But he was pulled out of his thoughts by a voice which he didn't know.

\- " Sorry, can I sit here ? There is no more room in the other cabins. "

Raising his head, Natsu saw that it was a young woman. She had long wavy hair so shiny that they almost seemed to change colors according to the ambient luminosity, but they mainly seemed to be light brown, even blonde. In the same way, her eyes were similar to a kaleidoscope, mainly blue but they shone with many colors, like green, grey and even yellow and red. She was tall, being easily 1m80, reaching 1m90 with her whites heels. She wore a pair of slim jeans which were sticking to her long legs, she had a pink pullover knotted around the waist and a docker of the same color with the text ' Diamond in the rough ' written in black on it, with a deep cleavage showing her big chest and showing her midriff. She wore a lot of jewelry, rings with many kinds of precious gems on her fingers, a pendant shaped like a horse, hoop earrings and golden bracelet. She held a handbag in her arm, she had sunglasses on her forehead and she was dragging a suitcase behind her. She looked like this kind of girl which were obsessed with clothes and which spent their days giggling and swooning over guys. In other words, not the kind of girl he liked.

After his inspection, Natsu silently agreed, letting this young woman sit down in front of him and placing her suitcase in the space over the seats. Seeing the evident illness of her neighbor, the young woman looked for something in her bag and took out a small plastic bottle which contained a strange orange liquid.

\- "Here. Drink that. You will get better."

Natsu remained forbidden one moment, eyes aimed at the bottle before admitting that he couldn't get into a worse shape than he was already, so it was worth a shot. So he took the bottle, already opened, and brought it to his lips. The slightly viscous beverage slid down his throat, disgust showing on his face.

\- "Yuck ! It's horrible !" Complained the mage, his neighbor finding it quite funny.

\- "It's normal. But you are in a better shape, isn't it ?"

Natsu gave himself some time to think and realized that, if he still was far from being at the top of his shape, he was much less nauseous, as his complexion suddenly less green could testify of it.

\- " Yeah, I'm feeling better now. Thank you, uh… " began Natsu before realizing that he didn't know how she was called. Which the stranger noticed.

\- " Rachel. And you are from Fairy Tail, right ? That's their symbol on your shoulder, isn't it ? " Noticed the young woman while pulling her hair back to put them in a ponytail.

\- " Yeah. My name is Natsu and here, it's Lucy. " Introduced Natsu by looking at Lucy, who was still sleeping. Rachel looked at Lucy, in particular her hands, a little bit worried.

\- " Is she okay ? She looked badly hurt. "

\- " Yeah, we had a bad encounter a few hours ago. I'm returning us to the guild so that she can be looked after. " Explained Natsu, because since he know a lot about burns, he suspected that waiting too long to heal those burns wasn't a good idea, but he had no choice.

\- " Wait, I think that I can do something for her. " Tried Rachel by searching in her suitcase and taking out a small first-aid kit which she opened without any further ado. " I have a kit to appease burns in there. It won't cure burns like those but that will be better than waiting for you to reach your destination and make thing worse." Seeing this stranger looking after Lucy's hands made him realize that he also had to get rid of his apriorism. This girl seemed like a nice person if she was taking care like that of somebody she didn't know. After a few minutes of silence during which she finished tending at Lucy, Rachel got up with a small smile.

\- " You are too cute, you both. When did you two began dating ? "

\- " What ? No, we aren't going out together. " babbled Natsu, taken aback by Rachel's sudden question.

\- " Ah. That means that I have the field his clear, then. " Suddenly said Rachel cheerily by sitting down next to Natsu, showing her already impressive cleavage even more, giving him a teasing look. " What do you say, big boy ? "

Natsu's reaction came quickly and like expected. He began blushing while trying to move back, not succeeding in doing so, stammering and stuttering as if someone had put his vocal cords in a shaker. He was especially surprised by the nerve of this girl who was flirting with him while he still had Lucy sleeping on his knees. But when after a few minutes of total embarrassment Rachel moved back roaring with laughter, Natsu didn't know what to think, completely lost.

\- "You should have seen your face, it was too funny!" Rachel burst out while going away from Natsu. "Don't worry. I know that I might not necessarily look like it, but I never steal other girls boyfriends. And even if you are not together, yet, it is clear that you are head over heel for her." She paused, thinking for a moment before starting again. "If you want, I can give you some advice so that you can be more to her liking."

The proposal of the young woman made Natsu think. He wanted to change for Lucy but he had no idea on how to proceed. He wouldn't mind a little help.

\- "I would like to, but a train ride is going to be a little too short for that."

\- "I know that. But I'm soon going to open a clothing store for women, men and child in Magnolia. And because your guild is based there, you could come to see me for more advice. At one condition." Added Rachel, suddenly overly serious.

Natsu squinted his eyes, as if he got ready to try to find the dirty trick in this condition.

\- "Which one ?" The question was welcomed with a smile by Rachel.

\- "You make me some advertisement at that guild of yours ! If mages as famous as yours come to my place, it will attract a lot of customers." Natsu almost face faulted, realizing that it was no tricky condition, just a business agreement of some sort.

\- "Well OK. We are starting with what ?" Threw Natsu, apparently satisfied by the way things were going.

\- "Start by describing to me how you usually are and I'll give you advice according to that."

Having put Lucy off his legs and placed her head on his scarf which he had folded to act as a pillow, Natsu began to answer Rachel's questions, not missing an advice, ready to change for what he hoped to be the best.

/- Magnolia -/

When Lucy woke up, she was surprised noticing that she was not in the same place as when she had fallen asleep. After a little more analysis, she realized that she was in a train and judging by what she saw through the window of the cabin, she was back at Magnolia.

 _" Wait, does that means that Natsu took the train by himself ? Is the world coming to an end ? "_

Speaking about Natsu, she noticed that she had his scarf under her head like a pillow of some sort but the Dragon Slayer was nowhere to be found. At least, it was the case until he reappears in the corridor, nauseous as usual.

\- " Ah Lucy, you are awake. We needs to hurry or the train is going to leave with us. " Announced the young man by holding himself to the wall whereas Lucy got up, giving him his scarf back. It was at this moment that Lucy noticed the bandages around her hands and feet.

\- " You looked after me ? With what ? "

\- " It was another passenger in fact, she had what was needed. But that is not totally cured. It's just the time for us to return to the guild. " Natsu explained while Lucy had difficulty standing because of her bruised feet. He thought again about one of the advice he got from Rachel and approached Lucy.

\- " Wait, Luce. I am going to carry you up to the guild. "

\- " But no, it's not necess... Hey! "

Lucy hadn't the time to finish her sentence that she found herself swept off her feet by Natsu. But while she expected to be put on his back, or even on his shoulder like a potato bag, Natsu carrying her bride style, putting her against his torso, making the young mage blush but didn't protest. When they arrived near the guild, Lucy was surprised that she was regretting that this closeness had to be interrupted so early. But she was not able to reflect about it any longer that Natsu had opened the doors of the guild, drawing the attention, then the enjoyment and the concern of their friends.

\- " Natsu! " Shouted Happy by throwing himself on his partner. " Where were you ? "

\- " Lucy-san ! What happened to your hands ?! And your feet ?! " Wendy said worried by seeing the bandages which the young woman wore, the concern intensifying when she removed them to see the wounds from up-close. " OH MY GOD ! How did you do that ? "

\- " She plunged them into the lava to melt the chains that held her prisoner. " Explained Natsu without any filter, shocking all the present mages, who turned their head to the blonde who was taken to the infirmary by the young Dragon Slayer.

\- " She did what ? " asked Laxus completely shocked (no pun intended), not believing what he heard. " Wow, she is a lot more strong than I though. " The compliment from Laxus, and the waves of approval which followed, made Natsu proud of his Luce, but a little bit of remorse darkening slightly his mood by recognizing that she had always been strong but that he had never noticed how much before. But it's the kind of mistake that he won't do any more.

/-2 weeks later-/

Lucy did not know in which world she had landed. It's as if after she collapsed from tiredness at mount Drastam, she had woken up in another dimension. A dimension where Natsu had been replaced by a wiser and caring version of himself. And honestly, she didn't know if she should be delighted or frightened by such a change.

At the beginning, she thought that it was due to her wounds and her convalescence. He volunteered to help her shopping for example, carrying her bags, because she had been ordered not to use her hands to make sure they don't get hurt any more than they already were. Watching him following her everywhere, helping her for everything he could, she expected that, as usual, he would takes things too far, doing as he please as always. But it is exactly there that it began to become strange for her. He hadn't insisted and gave her autonomy back without any question. It was already disconcerting, but not as much as some of his other changes which were almost unnatural. One day, she was going to go out of the guild to leave for a mission with Levy when Natsu had called her.

\- " Where are you going, Luce ? "

\- " I'm going on a mission with Levy. And before you ask, I … "

\- " OK, be careful. And have fun ! "

Lucy almost had an heart attack. She was persuaded that Natsu was going to try everything to go with them, doing the same kind of shit than when she had left for Akaruidesu, but instead of that, he had just accepted the fact that she was leaving on a job and had even encouraged her. She had to admit that this new Natsu almost frightened her. She especially wondered what happened to him to make him change like that and so suddenly ? Her head full of questions, she returned back home to relax but she realized by reaching her plate that it wouldn't be possible.

Indeed, she opened the door of her apartment and was welcomed by Cana, collapsed on her armchair, guzzling a nth bottle of alcohol without flinching.

\- " *sigh* Cana, what are you doing at my home ? Except drinking, of course."

\- "I saw in the cards that you were going through a difficult moment right now, so I said to myself that you would need a little of support." Answered the card mage by lowering her bottle. "And I am sure that this has to do with Natsu."

\- "Well, all right." Granted Lucy by sitting down on her sofa, pulling her legs against her chest. "It is just that his behavior suddenly changed so much. It is so strange and I don't know how to manage all this."

\- "Come on. It's not as if he had changed that much. You aren't going to lose the Natsu you are crazy in love with, don't worry." Casually answered Cana by sending a small provocation at Lucy who blushed deeply.

\- "I AM NOT CRA …" *DING-DONG * Lucy was literally saved by the bell when the bell of her apartment was heard, intriguing the 2 young women who wondered who it could be at this hour. Lucy got up and opened the door, coming face to face with the last person whom she expected to find here.

\- "Yo, Luce. You dropped your purse by leaving the guild later. I suggested returning it to you. Here." Explained Natsu by giving the purse back to its owner, who reached out without being aware of it, paralyzed in shock. "Well, I'm not going to linger here, I have to met Happy at the house. See you tomorrow." And he left as simply as he had arrived, without a word, leaving behind him Lucy, still completely gob smacked, taking a step back and closing the door, turning towards Cana who, like her, was bewildered to the point where she dropped her bottle which went to roll on the ground of the lounge. Their state was however understandable seen they had just seen Natsu coming at Lucy's …

… By passing through …

… THE FUCKING DOOR !

\- "OK, I take back what I said. There is really somethings wrong with him !" Admitted Cana by getting up from her seat.

\- "See ! That's what I just said. I don't know what to think of it anymore." Added a completely confused Lucy. Suddenly, Cana's face illuminated.

\- "I KNOW ! We are going to take a few days of rest. There is a nice place where I always wanted to go. Natsu might be going through a temporary phase and when we will return, it will get back to how it was before, I am sure of it."

Lucy balanced the pros and the cons of Cana's proposal, before smiling to the latter.

\- " OK, we can do that ! When are we leaving ? "

\- " We can go there tomorrow. I am going to go back to Fairy Hills to pack my suitcases. I'll meet you at the station tomorrow morning at 9 am, OK ? " Proposed Cana by going to the door.

\- " It okay for me. See you tomorrow. " And Cana left, letting Lucy prepare her own suitcase before going to bed, while thinking of Natsu and his changes.

 _" One day, I'll find what make you act like that, Natsu. You can believe it. "_

/-The next day, Westcoal Town-/

Lucy and Cana had just got off the train which had led them to Westcoal Town, a mining city in the southeast of Magnolia which was also the favorite city of the Connell family for a very good reason, it was a city which looked like a typical city of their country of origin. It was thus basically a city in the Far West style with wooden buildings, including great classics like a saloon and a pawn shop. Even the inhabitants seemed to have gone out of ' The good, the bad and the ugly ', with firearms on their belt, cowboy's hats, spurs and everything, as much for the men as for the women. Lucy and Cana had decided to put in the mood by following the same dress code, thus wearing pairs of jean shorts, boots of brown leather with spurs on the heels, brown sleeveless vest wore over a black docker, the whole accompanied with the 10-gallon hat that went with it. If they had done that, it is also because the city celebrated the birthday of its foundation, just 100 years ago, and that the city was having a festival to celebrate this. With multiple games, for the most part non-magic, was available almost everywhere, the 2 mages sailing between them. Well, it's what Lucy would have wanted to do, but Cana had other plan and she had thrown herself in a saloon as soon as they arrived and had begun to drink glass after glass of whiskey, Lucy looking at the scene half-amused, half-embarrassed.

\- " I now understand the reason why she wanted to come here so much. "

Deciding to let her friend have fun on her own, Lucy walked in the streets of the city, letting herself carried by the sound of the shouts and songs, several times interrupted by gun fire without any consequence for the party. However, when she arrived near a shooting range, a voice startled her.

\- " Go, dad ! You are best !" Roared a little girl, apparently very cheerful. Lucy had the feeling that she knew this voice and by going back to its source, she noticed that indeed, she knew this girl because it was Asuka, who was just standing in front of her mother Bisca, both concentrated on the shooting range where Alzack, gun in hand, was taking challenge after challenge without stopping, winning them all easily, much to the joy of his daughter. When he had finished, he returned towards his family under the applauses of the public.

\- "YEAH ! You are best, dad !" Shouted Asuka by throwing herself into her daddy arms who lifted her up with a big smile.

\- "Without a doubt. But when it came to precision, you would not have been that lucky against me." Bisca said, Alzack not trying to deny.

\- "And that would not disturb me in the least." He admitted then kissed his wife under the eyes of their daughter who laughed wholeheartedly. This show warmed at the heart of Lucy, who imagined herself instead of Asuka, in the arms of her father with her mother, when they were a happy family. But her vision fell out for a brief moment and she saw herself instead of Bisca, with Nastu replacing Alzack with a blond child in his arms.

 _"WHAT? No, no, no! I can't think like that. I don't even know where I am right now ! Stupid imagination !"_

Shaking her head, she went to the small family which were very surprised to see her.

\- "Lucy ! What are you doing here alone !" Asked Bisca while Alzack put Asuka on the ground.

\- "In fact, I am not alone, but Cana stopped in a saloon and I don't think that she is going to go out of here soon." Lucy said with an embarrassed smile which made the Connell smile to. "And you, what are you doing here ?"

\- "This city was founded by people coming from our home country. And everything here reminds us our childhood. We often come there, in particular to allow Asuka to discover what we had grown with. And since it's the city anniversary, we had to come."

They then take the decision to walk together, Lucy refusing the proposal at first, not wanting to bother their family moment, but the insistence of the Connell made her change of mind. They had a walk, going from games to games, either by pure desire for a challenge, or to please Asuka who wanted to play a lot of game. Everything went well and our small group spent an excellent morning. When came noon, they stopped in a restaurant, which was also a saloon, with a small scene, a background music played by an old piano, a bar where was leaned several people and a gaming room to play poker. Join by Cana who revealed that she had spent almost all of her morning in this place drinking, the 3 other adults sighing of exasperation while Asuka laughed wholeheartedly, without really understanding what she meant. The meal went well until the arrival of a trouble-maker who entered the building and there was a kind of strange vibe coming out of him. He a white cowboy hat with a brown thread around it, a black T-shirt wore underneath a brown sleeveless vest whose sleeves looked like they were torn away, a pair of jeans torn in several places with two cartridge belts around his waist hanging on each side with two Colts on his hips and to complete the whole, a pair of brown boots with spurs. His hat hid the top of his face, but it did not hide a naughty smile who drew even more the attention of the customers and owner of the saloon.

\- " Hello, mister. What can I serve you ? " Asked the barman by addressing the stranger who was now leaning on the bar.

\- " A whiskey. " He simply answered, the barman placing his order in front of him, which he downed in one sip.

\- " Hum. This whiskey's not bad. Almost as good as those from my Far West. " admitted the newcomer with an amused tone, the mages of Fairy Tail feeling something almost dangerous coming from this guy.

\- " Far West ? Never heard of that. " Admitted the barman under the others customers eyes who were intrigued by this stranger as much as the faeries.

\- " Say, owner, there is a thing which I would like to enjoy and I am sure that you have that in this establishment. "

\- "And what is it exactly ? " The question made him smile even more which made the uneasiness of the customers and mages grew even more. And when the answer arrived, the mages understood why.

\- " Fairies's tears. "

The 4 mages jumped out of their chairs, Bisca lifting Asuka in her arms, the little girl not understanding what was happening except that her parents were suddenly tensed. They had finally understood why this guy felt like a threat.

\- " So you are a Strizer! Is that it ? " Threw Lucy, on her guard beside Alzack who was ready to unsheathe his guns and Cana who had her cards in her hands. The stranger laughed lightly by lifting his hat then turned to the mages, not paying attention to the rest of the customers, revealing clay colored eyes and hair of the same color in wild locks with a lock falling in front of his eyes.

\- " That's right, my little lady. And now, I think that you know what that means. " Announced the Strizer before realizing that all the customers and even the barman had pointed a weapon at him. However, he was not intimidated in the least. " You have balls, I can't deny that. But you have to learn to know when you have no chance of winning against someone. "

 _ **DIRT BLAST !**_

He then stomped on the ground, causing a sort of explosion which caused an eruption of earth which filled the saloon and pushed away all the people present inside, the establishment exploding under the pressure of this mass of earth that appeared out of nowhere. When the mages came back to their senses, they were the outside of the bar, half buried under a huge mass of dirt.

\- " Is that… dirt ? How did he …? "

\- " ASUKA ! Where are you, dear ? " Bisca's cries interrupted Alzack who turned to see his wife looking everywhere around her, her daughter nowhere to be seen.

\- " Are you looking for her ? " Answered the Strizer, drawing the attention of the fairies who were struck by horror. The Strizer held Asuka by the collar, the girl struggling with all of her strength without succeeding in releasing herself.

\- " Hey, you coward ! She has nothing to do with that ! " Shouted Cana, whereas the Strizer still had a small grin.

\- " You don't have to worry about her. I have no intention of using her in any way. " He answered while placing Asuka on a stone plate that appeared by his side, bars appearing around her to form a cage keeping her prisoner. " But we are going to let her look. That should be very funny for her to see her friends and parents get wrecked. "

\- " Shit up and come here so that we could destroy you ! " Commanded Bisca, rifle in hand, her maternal instinct giving her the need to charge and mutilate the one who had kidnapped her daughter.

\- "I'll come, but you'll be the one who will be destroyed. But first, let me introduce myself. The name's Alexander Miller. Strizer of the earth. "

 _ **SHURIKEN CARDS !**_

 _ **STONE WALL !**_

By hearing Cana call her technique, Alex made a simple stone wall appear in front of him just as cutting cards approached him, the cards sinking into the wall which cracked under the impact.

\- " Spare us the presentations, we already know who you are. "

\- " I see that you are in a hurry to be crushed. " Teased Alexander by making his wall burst, the stone shards swirling around him. " Very well. In this case, let's not waste any more time in useless gossips. "

The mages took a stand, Asuka looking at the scene powerless and at the same time, in the neighborhood of the city, a silhouette approached, attracted by the magics emanating from the city. What everybody ignored on the other hand, was that an event nobody would have was able to foresee was going to occur in this battle.

 **And a small cliffhanger to finish this. I hope that you all liked this chapter. I'll see you all soon enough for the next chapter and a fight which will be surprising. See you !**

 **Next time: a mountain of difficulties. The power of a father. A royal intervention.**


	16. Chapter 16 : Earth, father and king

**Ah, here we are again, ready to take back where we left them the adventures of the mages against the Strizers. Moreover, talking about Strizers, somebody, a guest which will certainly recognize himself, asked me a question about the Strizers nationality, so I decided to list them to you, and even teasing you for the following ones. So here is the list:**

 **\- Vincenzo Giacconi: Italian**

 **\- Xun Liang: Chinese**

 **\- Dmitri Alekseïev: Russian**

 **\- Mizuki Takeda: Japanese**

 **\- Daniel Anderson: Australian**

 **\- Jameson Freeman and Alexander Miller: American (Jameson: New York, Alexander: Dallas)**

 **And the next ones will be: Icelander, Englishman, Frenchman, Egyptian and Argentine. Not necessarily in this order. Well, now that I answered this question, it's time to go down to business.**

 **Have fun !**

 **Chapter 16: In the name of the father, of the king and of the mother earth**

The city was plunged into chaos. Most of the inhabitants had run away under a shower of rubbles which were raining down like a brown hail which bombarded the buildings and struck the paved streets. Only 6 people had stayed. Alexander, Strizer of the earth, which didn't even had to raise his little finger to trigger this rock storm which had just stopped, offering to Lucy, Cana, Bisca and Alzack one moment to get their breath back under control, after managing to dodge all those missiles, even if they had a hard time doing it. A derisive smile stretched on the Strizer face, his eyes aimed at the 4 mages who looked at him with a growing need to beat this guy in their eyes.

\- " Well then ? Is that all ? I expected more resistance from you. Don't you want to get her back ? " He provoked by seizing the stone cage into which was locked the little Asuka, her eyes wet but doing her best to stay strong.

\- " LET MY DAUGHTER GO, YOU BASTARD ! "

 _ **MAGIC SNIPER RIFLE ! GUNS MAGIC: STINGER SHOT !**_

Bisca, more furious than never, had grabbed her sniper and opened fire on the Strizer which, without moving, had pulled a wall between him and the bullet, the latter blowing up the wall without hurting him. This detail was seriously beginning to get annoying.

\- " That really is a pain in the ass. How can we reach a guy who doesn't need to move to attack. " Said Cana, as lost as the others, looking desperately for a solution to this problem.

\- " It's not that easy, isn't it, m'lady. Strizers have better control of their element when they are touching with. Therefore, me and little Daniel are the best when it comes to control because we are constantly in touch with our element. Let me show you what I meant. "

 _ **RUMBLING EARTH !**_

The earth suddenly began shaking, like a earthquake whose epicenter was situated at the Strizer feet, the rumbling making the mages lost they footing. But Alex had not finished yet.

 **EARTH FANGS !**

The ground suddenly bristled with long and pointy sharpened stone which were thrown towards the sky, the mages managing to evade them but taking some damages because of their lack of footing. But after a few seconds, they realized that the stones thrown at the sky didn't fall back. When they looked at the Strizer et saw him with his hand up, palm opened towards the sky as if he was supporting something and his bad smile, they understood that this attack had two phases. And some moment later, Alex suddenly chopped his hand down towards the ground, the stone following the movement and came down on the mages. A cloud of dust covered the zone, letting an unbearable suspense hover in the air until the cloud began disappearing, discovering the mages whose conditions took the Strizer by surprise. Lucy was unhurt, having called upon Horologium before the rocks could reach her. She had apparently called upon Gemini, because Cana had too been protected by the spirit of the clock. As for the Connell on the other hand.

\- " DADDY ! MOMMY !"

The cry from Asuka shook Bisca who get back to her to find herself on the ground, with Alzack on top of her, a big sharp stone impaling his right side. He had dived to protect his wife and had succeed in rescuing her, paying the price with his body.

\- " ALZACK ! Are you OK ? Answer me ! "

\- " Yeah, I'm good. I'll be good, it's not as painful as it look. " Answered the mage grimacing while sitting up and pulling the shard out of his body. " Anyway, we have to find a way to counter him. "

\- " I think I have an idea. " Announced Lucy by approaching the Connell with Cana. " But you'll have to win some time. "

 _ **ROCK TORPEDO !**_

\- "Watch out !"

Asuka's warning allowed the mages to throw themselves out of the way, a big stone block striking the ground with the strength of a missile at the exact same place they were a few seconds ago.

\- "Do you really want to keep mumbling like that ? Did you decided to give up and surrender ? "

\- " In your dream, shit head. "

 _ **GUNS MAGIC : TORNADO SHOT !**_

Alzack pointed his two weapons at the Strizer and shot two tornados which rushed at the Strizer which, naturally, didn't have to raise a single finger to reveal a rather wide wall to block the attack. But Alzack had not finished. Without stopping, he changed his bullet. And this time, he was joined by his partner and wife.

 _ **REQUIP DOUBLES MACHINE GUNS !**_

 _ **GUNS MAGIC : BLAST BULLET !**_

The Connell family made bullets rain on the Strizer which had no other choices but to take his hands out of his pockets to have a better control, especially as they had begun running all around him while firing burst after burst of bullets. After some times, Alzack and Bisca found themselves once again in front of the Strizer, Bisca this time armed with a bazooka aimed at the latter.

\- " You didn't learned the lesson, it would seem. It's not your small bullets which are going to be enough to stop me. Moreover, where are your friends ? They fled, that's it ? "

 _ **CARD MAGIC : THE PRAYER'S FOUNTAIN !**_

A sudden mass of water fell on him from above, flooding him literally, but without doing any damages. You could almost read the disappointment on the Strizer face. He turned to the person who did that and it turned out it was Cana, standing not far from there.

\- " If you want me to take care of you first, I can do that. That is not a problem. "

He held out a hand towards the cards mage but he didn't have time to attack that he heard a noise coming from his right. He turned his head back and saw Alzack and Bisca side by side, their weapons charged with bluish magic bullets.

 _ **GUNS MAGIC : DUAL BLAST BULLET !**_

2 magic bullets left their weapons but without worrying Alexander who raised, still without moving, a wall of earth to protect him. But by seeing the wall in question, he suddenly felt tense. Because the water thrown by Cana wasn't meant to divert his attention but to mix with the earth which, because of all the walls that he had raised to protect himself from the Connells, had become particularly malleable, which meant that now water had been added to it, it had turned into mud. Direct consequence of that, the wall wasn't useful at all, both magic missiles getting through the wall without any problem at all, forcing Alexander to forget Cana to intercept the attack.

 _ **ROCK CLAWED HANDS !**_

He caught the shots with his 2 hands, which were covered with a stone layer taking the shape of big claws allowing him to catch the attack, just hoping to get rid of it by sending it to the side, which he did without too many problem, destroying a building at the same time. But the mages had not finished yet. The Connells spouses had loaded a second shot which came a second after that. Alexander, noticing that his claws had nastily been bashed up by the previous attack, began to strengthen them before taking back his stance to intercept the second shot.

 _ **CARD MAGIC : ICICLE !**_

But Cana had jumped over Alexander and, while she was just over him, had thrown stalactites, thanks to her card, on his hands, destroying the claws which were still weakened. Understanding that an interception won't be possible any more, he gathered his strengths at his feet.

 _ **GROUND LAUNCH PAD !**_

The earth began to swell under his feet intending to throw him far off, but he stayed glued on the spot, feet blocked by something, and by looking down, he saw that it was not something, but rather someone because he was blocked by hands. A pair of handcuffed hands.

\- " Ah, fuck this shit. "

The explosion ringed through the now ruined city, making the walls of the houses shake. Except the one in which Alexander had just crashed. He got out from the rubbles rather quickly, visibly annoyed by that and was not going to let those mages get away with such a stratagem.

 _ **GROUND EJECTION GEYSER !**_

Stamping on the ground, he created a whole lot of earth geyser, one of them propelling in the air a maid with pink hair and with handcuffs used like bracelets. She recovers in the air with no problem at all and touched the ground gracefully, Alexander approaching the 3 mages and the stellar spirit, the presence of the latter reminding him that somebody was still missing.

\- " Where is blondie ? "

\- " The princess will tear you away from the ground. Moreover, she should be here soon. " Answered Virgo, intriguing Alexander. How this blonde could extract him from the ground ? He received an answer to this question very quickly, taking a shape that he had not imagined.

 _ **STAR DRESS AQUARIUS : AQUA METRIA !**_

A shadow covered him for a second and Alexander found himself thrown in the air by the very earth he should have been able to control which had begun bending like the waves of an ocean, one of the said waves managing to throw him into the sky, arriving face to face with Lucy, which was dressed in her Star Dress Aquarius, and she apparently had not finished with him yet.

\- " Don't go thinking that it will be as easy as that. I don't need to touch the ground to beat you ! "

 _ **ROCK RUSH !**_

A multitude of bowling ball sized rocks came from all sides on Lucy, who kept a poker face whereas her body became covered with a cloud of smoke and the following moment, she was dressed with her Taurus Star Dress, the blonde taking advantage of her strength multiplied tenfold to reduce the rocks to dust while wrapping up her whip around Alexander waist, she suddenly dragged him towards her and hurled an enormous punch in the rib cage, sending him crashing on the ground, the violence of the blow digging a large crater in the ground. Alexander had a hard time getting up, but the view of Lucy, plunging towards him her foot stretched forward. He got up by pushing on his hands, welcoming the foot of the blonde with his own, which he had beforehand covered with stone to amplify the power of the blow. The impact between both created a shock wave which lifted a cloud of dust, Alexander pushing Lucy away who went to land next to the others, while the Strizer went out of the crater. In front of him, the mages looked rather confident.

\- " It would seem that you are not as tough as you look without your small pebbles to protect you. " Jested Cana by smiling, which slightly annoyed Alex.

\- " I am the Strizer of the earth. I control mud the same as I do for rock dust. You'll learn the hard way that being all confident like that against me is not the best thing for you to do. " To rest his words, the mud which surrounded him began moving.

 _ **MUD PRISON WAVE !**_

The mud was transformed into a big wave which broke out on the mages who were unable to evade and in spite of their efforts, they all end up being prisoner of the wave which lifted them in the air before crushing them on the ground with violence. The mud retracted, leaving the mages on the ground before returning beside the Strizer.

\- " As if that was going to be enough to make us give up. We are going to… hey wait. My hands ! " Bisca had stopped dead in her rant by seeing that her hands had been covered with a thick layer of hardened clay to prevent her from seizing her weapons. Naturally, Alzack was the first one to be by her side.

\- " Don't worry, dear. I'm going to free them with my … " Alzack also stop when he realized that he too had a problem. " Where are my guns ? "

\- " You talking about that ? " By turning their heads to Alex, the mages saw that Alzack's guns were stuck in the mud that attacked them. But not just those weapons. Lucy's keys, her whip and Cana's cards were also prisoner of the earth chunk. In other words, they were defenseless. " Well, whom of you 4 I am going to eliminate first. Oh I know, I am going to begin with you 2. " He Announced while pointing a finger at Lucy and Cana. " After all, you have weapons I can't take away from you. And I do not want to take the risk of facing a Fairy Glitter or an Urano Metria. "

 _ **STONE LOCKER !**_

Stone suddenly appeared on the legs of the 4 mages, immobilizing them while rendering them vulnerable to what was going to follow.

\- " Let's begin with you, Cana. "

 _ **EARTH DEATH ROW : GROUND GLADIUS!**_

A gigantic blade of black stone covered with strange engraving appeared suddenly, going out of the ground and going right at Cana, who despite her effort did not manage to get free and it was the same thing for the others, who could do nothing of other one to part look, powerless.

\- "Cana ! "

The blade got dangerously closer to the brunette who close her eyes, expecting the worst, but nothing came because the blade suddenly fell into pieces. Well, to be more precise, the blade had been cut into a multitude of cube. The explanation : the presence of a bearded man standing next to what remained of the blade. A man whom the mages knew very well.

\- " GILDARTS ! " Alzack, Bisca and Lucy shouted, eyes slightly wet from happiness, whereas Cana on her side cried for good.

\- " You took your time, dad. "

\- " You know that I like those last moment rescue. And you over there. " He Continued by turning to Alexander, his face severe. " You need a good correction. And I'll gladly give it to you. "

\- " I wouldn't be so sure if I were you ! "

 _ **MOUNTAIN RUSHING STRIKE !**_

To answer the threat, he raised a gigantic mass of stone and earth which formed an enormous mountain which collapsed on Gildarts, but the latter had only to raise his hand and the immense heap of rock split up just as it came into contact with it. Gildarts smiled roguishly, the other fairies delighted by how the thing were turning out. On the other hand, Alexander was suddenly much less serene. He hadn't planned that somebody from the outside was going to intervene, and especially not someone as powerful as Gildarts. He grinded his teeth, thinking about a plan while deciding to save some time.

 _ **PANGEAN EDGE SPIKES !**_

He put his hands on the ground and called upon a real thick swarm of long sharpened spikes which came from all sides on Gildarts, the latter evading without having too much of a hard time, reducing to piece the one who came too close to him. The Strizer was getting tired trying to stop Gildarts so he finally decide to forget the spikes and move on to something else.

 _ **MUD PILLAR JAIL !**_

An enormous geyser of mud arises suddenly from under Gildarts, Alexander hoping to hinder him enough to prevent him from using his magic.

And it worked.

For 2 seconds.

Because after yawning out of boredom, the mage extricated himself from the mud effortlessly, just landing at the foot of the column before rushing at Alexander who, seeing the attack arriving, switch to defense mode.

 _ **STONE WALL WAY !**_

He raised several wall between him and Gildarts, but the latter passed them all without any problem, the walls falling to pieces magically (A.N.: unintended pun). By seeing that, Alexander tried a last technique but to tell the truth, he already suspected what was going to happened.

 _ **SILEX ARMOR !**_

 _ **CRUSHING EVIL, SPREADING THE TRUTH : EMPYREAN !**_

Alexander tried to cover himself with an armor of sharp stones to at least try to deal a few damages on Gildarts, but the latter erased his armor even before touching it. Therefore, he fully took the blow soaked with magic right in the face and was sent at the other end of the city, getting through several buildings easily. Taking advantage of the small calm, Gildarts broke the wall of clay left by Alexander, thus freeing the weapons of the mages, but also Bisca's hand.

\- "It's okay, you don't suffer too much ?" Asked the older mage, obtaining a quick answer on behalf of his daughter.

\- "We are fine, dad. Well, we are not going to lie, it could be better."

\- "MOM, DAD ! FREE ME !"

The shouts from Asuka, still prisoner of her stone cage finally reached them, the parents rushing towards said cage, falling on their knees by her side.

\- "Don't worry my darling. Everything is fine, now, the bad man is not there." Reassured Bisca by caressing tenderly the cheeks of her daughter, Alzack squatted by her side. "Gildarts, can you free my daughter please ?"

\- "But with pleasure. Watch out little lady, go away from the bars." Asuka obey, the hand of Gildarts approaching the bars whereas Lucy and Cana approached the group, but at the moment he was going to touch the cage.

 _ **DUST EXPLOSION !**_

A sudden explosion coming from the ground lifted a thick cloud of dust which spread panic among the mages. When the dust finally fell down, the cage was still there, but open and empty. Looking around them, they saw Alex, standing on a small heap of earth, Asuka under his arm.

\- "RELEASED HER ! She has nothing to do in this !" Not obtaining any answer, not even the slightest movement on behalf of the Strizer, Gildarts stopped, intrigued then noticed what was wrong. And this is when he felt it.

 _ **ROCK DARTS !**_

Gildarts reacts all at once, throwing himself on the trajectory of a stone darts the size of an Olympic javelin which was going at Cana from behind her, the stone piercing his side, amazing Gildarts due to the fact that his magic was not able to break this chunk of rock. The other mages saw another Alexander behind Cana, a hand stretched towards Gildarts, Lucy and Cana reacting in the second by throwing cutting cards and swinging their whip in his direction, but he dived, literally, into the ground to reappear beside the other Alexander, who began to fall to pieces.

\- "I can't believe that you all fell for such a simple trick." Admitted Alex while holding Asuka by the collar, his stone double crumbling off totally. "Well, I do needed a little luck to pull that off."

\- "I don't see what you managed to do, here. It's not because you were able to did some damages on Gildarts that we …"

\- "My magic … doesn't work anymore ?"

Lucy was interrupted by Gildarts, who had just released something that had the effect of a bomb.

\- "That … What ? But how …?" Stuttered Alzack before Alex answered him without waiting any longer.

\- "Mana Lock Stone. A stone of my invention which went inside your body thanks to the javelin. I found that there were ways in this world to block the magic flows and I have synthesized the basic principle in this stone. As long as it will be in your body, you won't be able to use your magic anymore." The revelation didn't please the mages which made their disgust known.

\- "It really is a dirty trick." Threw Cana, receiving a scathing remark to answer her remark.

\- "Dirty ? But of course it is. The world is basically unfair. And complaining won't help sorting things out." The words of the Strizer did not please the mages, and what followed neither. "Well, we had fun and all that, but it's time to finish it."

Suddenly, the earth rose under the Strizer which was swallowed by what had just gone out of the ground, when the earth and the dust cloud fell down, they saw that Alexander, but also Asuka, were in the head of some kind of golem made of black stones towering them at 20 meters high and 6 meters wide.

 _ **OBSIDIAN GOLEM : EARTH SHAKING PUNCH !**_

The golem raised one of his hands and punched the ground with such a strength that the ground cracked on several meters around the impact point, the shock wave propelling the mages in the surrounding rubbles, totally knocking Alzack and Bisca out, Gildarts still down for the count because of the stone in his body, knowing that he would have been able to continue to fight if he had didn't had that thing in his body. So there was only Lucy and Cana, both young women not feeling comfortable in front of this giant soldier of stone. But they were not going to get discouraged.

 _ **HEAVEN, REVERSE DEATH, MOUNTAIN : SUMMONED LIGHTNING !**_

 _ **STAR DRESS SAGITTARIUS : SHOOTING STAR CANNON !**_

Both lightning and stellar magic powered spell exploded when they came in contact with the golem, creating a cloud of dust which blocked their sight, but when the cloud disappeared, they saw that their attacks had done nothing.

\- " HAHAHAHAHA ! You fool, this golem is built in one of the most solid stones which I possess, it is no ore that you can break easily with what this world has to offer. It's sad, but it's Game over for you." And true to his words, the golem advanced and prepared a punch aimed at Lucy but Cana pushed her out of the way of the golem and took the blow herself which sent her crashing near her father who fought against the pain to go towards his daughter. Lucy, lengthened on the ground, always under the shock to have been saved by Cana, looked at the golem which raised his arm once again, ready to crush her, the blonde squeezing her eyes shut but after a few second, she opened them and was surprised by what she saw. All around her, the time had seemed to stop. She looked around her to see that actually, everything seemed frozen. She did not understand what was happening until Leo appears in front of her.

\- " Leo ? What's going on ? "

\- "We used all our magic to be able to send you a message before this guy can attack. There is a way for you to stop him." Lucy, at first intrigued, was now interested.

\- "And what is that way ?" Leo's face twisted, apparently ill-at-ease, already knowing perfectly how she was going to react.

\- "The same way you used to destroy Alegria from Tartaros."

Lucy needed a moment to think but when she understood what he was getting at, she immediately decided she hate the idea.

\- "No, it's out of the question, I won't call him again. I refuse to lose another spirit like I lost Aquarius. I will find another way !"

\- "There is no other way Lucy ! Only the king is powerful enough to destroy the stone this thing is made of. Gildarts could but he is unable to do it right now. You are going to die if you don't do anything."

\- "THEN I'LL DIE ! I'd rather die than make my friends suffer. I've had enough seeing people suffer because I'm not capable of defending myself. I HAVE HAD IT !"

\- "Lucy, stop that. As a stellar spirit, it is our duty to help and protect our master. It is what Aquarius did and we are all ready to do it if we have to. You HAVE to call upon the king, you have no other solutions !" Leo insisted while he seriously began to be afraid. If she stayed as stubborn too much, the protection she got from the spirits will disappear and it will be too late for her.

\- "NO ! I DO NOT WANT TO LOSE ANOTHER SPIRIT ! If it really is the only hope that I have, I'll force him out of his kingdom myself, I'll even give my life instead of one of yours if I had to !" This time, Lucy really cried, tears flowing down her face before finishing on a whisper. "Just this time, let me be the one protecting everyone."

Alas, the protection from the spirit got away and time returned to normal just after that, the golem attack continuing as if nothing happened, which was the case for everyone beside Lucy and her spirit, even if the Strizer had some strange feeling inside him telling him that something strange just happened but he shrugged it off and continued his assault but while the fist was about to crush Lucy, under the powerless gaze of the other mages who shouted in fear, something unexpected happened and forced Alexander to stop his attack. Lucy's keys had begun to vibrate violently then they flew out of the key ring and straight into the sky. A strange phenomenon Lucy's key weren't the only one experiencing.

/- Meanwhile, in Magnolia -/

\- "This shop is great ! I cannot believe that he knows a place like that !" Yukino exclaimed. "And the owner is really nice to."

\- "I admit that I am very surprised too. That is rather unexpected coming from him." Admitted Minerva, standing beside the white haired mage. "You think that this dress will be nice for my … Hey, what is this light in your pocket ?" Suddenly, much to the surprise of both women, the Libra, Ophiuchus and Pisces keys went out of Yukino's pocket floating for a time in the air.

\- "Fear not mistress Yukino." Said the voice of the Pisces mother coming from the key. "We will be back soon."

After that, they went flying away by the door-window of the store, breaking the said window in the process and leaving both women stunned. After a few moments of silence, Minerva broke it with a question.

\- "Uh, did I just witness your keys running away ?"

/- Return to Westcoal -/

Lucy's keys, now join by Yukino's ones, kept going up and disappeared in the clouds, under the eyes of the Strizer and mages which had absolutely no idea of what was happening and it is not what followed that will help them clear their mind. The sky opened suddenly, revealing a starry sky, as if the night had just fallen. A star in this sky seemed to shine more than the others and getting bigger and begging with each second. They didn't need a lot of time to understood that if that star was getting bigger, it's because she was approaching them quickly. A meteor tore this starry sky and a short time later, it crashed on the ground, just in front of Lucy and Leo, who had attended this show with the same level of surprise as the others and when he saw what it was, he opened his eyes so widely that his glasses almost fell to the ground.

\- "No, tell me that I'm dreaming."

The meteor was in fact some kind of small pillar made of white stone covered with golden engraving covered with a tray on which was represented the 88 constellations, the 12 Zodiac signs and Ophiuchus being closer to the center. And in the middle of the tray a small dome. The 12 golden keys and Ophiuchus's one then appear above their respective symbol around the dome and they entered in the symbol as if they were keyholes. Once the 13 locks had been opened, the dome disappeared in a flash of light and inside the dome was a key which seemed to be made in an azure colored metal and decorated with stones looking like diamonds. On the top of the key, where is normally supposed to be the symbol of the constellation was in fact some kind of crown. After that, they keys then began flying, Lucy getting her back while Pisces, Libra and Ophiuchus flew away to return to Yukino.

\- "What is that?" asked Lucy even if a part of her suspected what that could be but she needed someone to confirm it to him.

\- "It is … the key of celestial spirits king. I cannot believe that he sent it." Explained Leo, completely shocked.

\- "But I thought that it was only a legend ?" Admitted Lucy, from now on as surprised by the presence of this key as the spirit of the Lion.

\- "She always existed but he has never found somebody deserving it. But it is also because that key is dangerous. She allows you to call upon the old man, but she is going to ask for you for so much magic that it can become dangerous for you. Besides, he cannot stay for more than 3 minutes at the very best given that he is not supposed to come in this world, a little like when he appeared to counter Tartaros. It is extremely dangerous."

\- "But I chose you as a reason." The voice of the spirits king could be heard, taking them both by surprise. "I never have, during my long existence, met a mage with such raw talent and who loved my spirits so much. I am sure that you will use my power advisedly, but as my old friend said, to use this key will be very dangerous for you. Are you ready to do this sacrifice ?"

\- " If that allows me to protect my friends and to protect my spirits, you bet that I am ready. " She declared while seizing the key, not losing another second, gathering all the magic that she still had in her. But Alexander was not going to let her do as she wished.

\- " Go fuck yourself, little bitch ! If you think that I'm going to let you do as you please ! " He began to order his golem to attack when suddenly. " OUCH ! You little… " Asuka had grabbed the small popgun which she had with her and had fired in Alex's eye, the latter throwing the girl out of the golem out of fury, a gest he'll regret doing since it could have protected him from what was about to happen. On her side, seeing the young girl hurling to the ground, Lucy react in spite of the call she was actually preparing to do another invocation.

 _ **OPEN, GATE TO THE LAMB : ARIES !**_

 _ **GUNS MAGIC : SUNLIGHT BULLET !**_

The cotton candy haired spirit appeared, apologizing as usual before throwing a woolen block under Asuka, cushioning the fall of the girl which almost got put to sleep when she came in contact with this magic wool. Once Asuka was saved, Lucy called back Aries and concentrated her strengths in her last invocation, The Strizer unable to do anything else to counter her because he was blinded by the bright bullets fired by Alzack.

 _ **OPEN, GATE TO THE CELESTIAL PALACE : STELLAR SPIRIT KING !**_

One more time, the sky opened on the celestial vault and a pillar of light fall on the ground in front of Lucy and when the light disappeared, as the key would have let it guess, the king of the stellar spirits stood between the mages and the Strizer, always the same as when he had appeared over Karen's grave or when he had made the mages come in his world before the Great Magic Games, but he was smaller seen that he was "only" 4 meters tall. But he was emanating such a raw power that Alexander was really not comfortable even if his golem was, in fact, twice as big as the king in his actual form. Lucy on the other hand was not in the best condition. The summoning of the king had drained her of all the magic that was left in her and she had a hard time staying conscious. The King then unsheathed his sword, to take care of Alexander who was not going to go down without a fight.

 _ **PANGEANIC OBSIDIAN BLADE !**_

 _ **METEOR BLADE !**_

Gathering all the strengths he still had in him, Alexander called upon the depths of the earth a gigantic blade of black stone covered with brown engraving which drilled the ground and charged at the old king in armor which raised his sword and with a single swing, he brought it down towards the ground, sending a huge straight-linear explosion of blue energy which seemed to be filled with stars towards the Strizer, getting through everything without any trouble, destroying both obsidian formations while imposing heavy damages on Alexander who fell to the ground heavily, having difficulty getting up, giving more or less the signal for the mages to finish it, which they did after a few long seconds without moving, having been paralyzed by the sudden appearance of the king, the latter no longer here, returning to his world, his disappearance making Lucy collapse from tiredness while Cana and the Connells had the honor to finish the guy.

 _ **GUNS MAGIC : BURNING OMNIDIRECTIONNAL EXPANSION !**_

 _ **GUNS MAGIC : EXPLOSIVE BULLET STORM !**_

Several revolver appeared around Alexander, who got just hardly got up, and flames bullets rained on him from every sides, whereas Bisca, two machine guns in her hands, called upon a rain of explosive bullets on the Strizer who couldn't keep up anymore and Cana finished it all, her arm glittering intensely.

 _ **FAIRY GLITTER !**_

An intense golden light began to appear and after a few seconds, a violent explosion swallowed the Strizer and made the earth shake, an immense crater appearing to the location of the explosion and when the light subsided and the dust had completely fallen again, Alexander was completely burned out and out cold at the bottom of the crater. The battle was finished and even thought they were relieved, the mages remembered themselves of what it also meant.

There were only 5 Strizers left. The end was close.

/- In the spiritual world -/

\- "My King, why did you offered your key to Lady Lucy ? I feel like you lied about your motivation."

Capricorn was standing in front of the king, kneeling, the latter sitting on its throne looking at the spirit with an amused smile.

\- "I didn't lied when I said that I've never seen a Stellar mage like her, before. I like that girl." He said before turning serious. "But you are right, there is something else. I feel a strong power dwelling in the darkness. A power they won't be able to beat if they aren't at their best. I give her my key so she can be ready for what might come. Their world won't be getting any rest any time soon."

 **Here we are. I am sorry if this end seemed rather hasty, but I didn't write as much as that I would have believed at the beginning of the week and since I wanted to hold my usual schedule, I made a choice. I hope that this will have pleased you either way. We will see each other soon for some new adventures ! See you !**

 **Next time: Consequences of battles. New fashion paradise in Magnolia. Going to honor the dead.**


	17. Chapter 17 : Fashion Queen, Death King

**Hello guys. I'm back earlier than I usually am, I know, but it's due to the fact that I put One Piece fic on hold for an indefinite time for reasons I explain in said fic. So I'm back with the 17** **th** **chapter right after the 16th but maybe another fic will come to take my One Piece fic place (2 choices for me at this point: a new crossover Fairy Tail x Kamen Rider Build or another crossover, One Piece x My Hero Academia). But at the moment, let us concentrate we on this 17th chapter.**

 **And I'd like to thank RedDeWeeaboo for his very nice review. Thanks man, it's really awesome to know that some people like what I'm doing. It give me strength to keep it alive.**

 **Chapter 17: queen of the fashion and King of deaths**

The mages still needed several minutes to get over the commotion. The fight against Alexander had been much rougher than they would have thought. But as the famous saying said : all's well that ends well. Once the chaos was over, the first thing that broke the newly installed silence that reigned over the now ruined city was the Connell family who went to retrieve their daughter who had been put aside by Aries before disappearing to allow Lucy to call the Spirits King.

\- " ASUKA ! "

\- " DADDY, MOMMY ! "

The small family was finally back together, Bisca on her knees hugging her daughter tightly in her arms, the girl hugging her back before being inspected by both adults, checking if their daughter wasn't hurt. Which was the case, but nothing really bad. She had some scratches here and there, among which one more important than the others on her upper right arm, probably obtained when the Strizer had thrown her out of his golem. By looking at their daughter in the eyes, Alzack and Bisca saw small tears pearling in the corners of her eyes: the girl tried to stay strong for her parents, sniffing loudly to prevent her from crying which made them smiles softly.

\- " I am so glad that you are well. " Said Bisca, caressing the cheek of her daughter who smiled slightly. " But why would you fire at the naughty man ? He could have hurt you badly, you know. "

\- " I wanted to protect you, like everybody do at the guild. " Answered Asuka shyly, as if she expected to be punished for doing something as dangerous, which made her parents smile, Alzack caressing the top of her head in a soothing way.

\- " I see. Don't worry, as long as you are not hurt, it is all that matters. And we are proud of you. " That answer from Alzack made the girl grin before she ran up to join the 3 other mages, her parents following her closely, the small family approaching the group.

Cana was carrying with difficulty her father, an action which was not facilitated by the latter state, his body still badly bruised by the fight and the magic locking stone he now had in his organism. But she really had no choice, dragging the older mage towards Lucy who was still laying on her back, breathing deeply trying to get her strengths back, strength that had melted away when she called upon the king. Speaking of the king, she raised her right hand which held the famous azure colored key and looked at it, a light smile on her lips. Even if the invocation of the king was dangerous, she already thought of a way to use its power, even partially, hopefully without taking so much risk, but she'll have to train a lot for that. She was joined shortly after by the other mages, Asuka kneeling down near her.

\- " Lucy are you ok ? " asked the little girl, worried.

\- " Yes, I'm all right. I just need a little bit of rest. Thank you for saving me, Asuka. " Answered the blonde, Asuka tilting her head, as if she did not understand what she said.

\- " Why do you thank me ? It's normal to protect our family. " The answer of the girl took the mages by surprise, hoping it might meant what they thought.

\- " What do you mean ? " Asked Cana, trying to see if they understood well.

\- " The guild is like a family, no ? Thus Lucy and Cana are my big sisters. " The words of Asuka made the mages smile proudly, Cana going as far as abandoning Gildarts one moment to embrace the girl.

\- "You're so sweet, you know that ?" she said while her dad came close to the little girl.

\- " And I ? What am I for you ? " Asked Gildarts like a child, pointing at his own face.

\- " You are Grandpa Gildarts ! " She had answered so proudly and quickly that the 4 young mages erupted with laughter looking at the outraged face of their older comrade and father who was almost sniveling while trying to reason the girl, only managing to make her laugh too. Once the laughing fit ended, Cana turned to her father, who was now sulking, to ask him a question.

\- " Hey, dad, all jokes aside, how are you ? "

\- " I'll be better when this thing will have been removed from me. Where is Mr. Mountain, I need that ass to correct his bullshit. "

\- " There's no need to make him do that. "

This new voice drew the attention of the mages on the crater where was now standing a young man with middle-length blonde hair and dressed like a surfer some of them knew well.

\- " You ! You are the Strizer of the sky that Romeo, Wendy, Happy, Carla and Cherrya beat. What do you want ? " Answered Cana, getting ready to fight if needed.

\- " No need to stress you out for nothing. Just relax, I didn't came here to fight, just to get back some affairs. " Answered Daniel by gesturing at Alexander who was stretched out on some kind of stretcher made of clouds which floated next to him. " I have to admit that I'm surprised. No one could have predict the fact that blondie here could call the Stellar Spirit King. "

\- " When you said that there's no need to make him help us, what do you mean by that ? " Asked Gildarts, slightly anxious.

\- " He had planned to use his Lock Stone during his fight and he made us a technical description of the stone and how he would use it. It's a small pebbles the size of a dice which will be dissolved by your body and leaves no residue. In a few days, your magic will return, I swear it on my life. "

This explanation, although nice, because it meant Gildarts was going to be able to get his powers back, also left them perplexed.

\- " Why would he try to create a stone that make us unable to use our power temporary when he could make it permanent ? It doesn't make sense. " Wondered Alzack, Daniel offering him a quick and mysterious answer.

\- " Maybe we have no interest in rendering you unable to fight for good. I just hope that Lock Stone won't take too much time to dissolve, that could change our schedule. " He explained, finishing on a murmur before turning to the mages, who had apparently heard everything. " Oops. Looks like I said too much. Too bad. Bye ! " And he disappeared with Alexander in a small tornado, leaving 5 totally stunned mages behind them.

\- " What did he meant by that ? " Worried Bisca while helping Lucy to get up, Gildarts still held by Cana.

\- " No idea. But it's not by staying here that we'll answer this question. So let's return to the guild and tell everything to Makarof and the others. "

Agreeing with the 5th master of the guild, they began to head towards the station when they were stopped by the inhabitants who had just returned, visibly pissed by what they city had become.

\- " Hey, you all. We are very grateful of you for having stopped this dude, but who is going to pay for the repairs ? " The mages paused for a moment and then, without warning, took off in a sprint, angered inhabitants in hot pursuit.

/- Magnolia -/

The sun was setting down on the city of Magnolia, most of the businesses had closed their doors but there is one who was still occupied by 2 people. More exactly, it was Natsu and his new friend and adviser in human relations, Rachel. The rainbow eyed beauty was behind her counter, counting the money she won during the day, which had was very successful. On the other side, Natsu had collapsed on the counter, apparently brought down by something. He heave a deep sigh which, judging by the slightly annoyed expression on Rachel's face, was not the first one.

\- " If you just came here to sigh and groan on my counter, you can go back home. "

\- " It is just that, well. I followed your advices to change myself but it didn't work that well. Everybody looks at me as if I had a second head that sprouted overnight. " Complained Natsu, at the same time disappointed that his changes have not the expected effect with his friends but also tired to have to play such a role as much as that.

\- " Stop complaining and man up a little, please. It's not that terrible, yes ? " Rachel tried to calm the situation, persuaded that the Dragon Slayer was complaining a little too much. But Natsu's face, clearly saying 'are you fucking kidding me' said otherwise.

\- " Today, Makarov called Porlyusica because they thought that I was under the influence of some sort of spell and when they discovered that it was not the case, they began to treat me like I was a guy disguised as myself. I think that I have all the rights to feel like bad. "

Ah. Rachel did not expect that. Putting her accounts on the side, she turned to Natsu, who was sighing again.

\- " You know, I think that we went too far. The change was probably too rough for them. Which is understandable, when I think of it. "

\- " So what do you propose ? " Asked Natsu, all ears about what the young woman could propose.

\- " Stop pretending. Go back to who you always were. " Proposed Rachel. " Besides, now that I think about it, it was a bad idea to try to make you change. That would have never worked. "

\- " You could just say that I am irremediable while you're at it. " Natsu said, feeling hurt, not appreciating the comment, which Rachel quickly rectified.

\- " No, I didn't wanted to say it like that. I mean that to change oneself just to please somebody is never the solution. It is necessary that people love you and appreciates you for what you are really. And also, I am sure that your loved one will never return your feelings if you change too much. "

\- " So I begin to behave like before ? It's back at square one, that's it ? " Asked Natsu trying to be sure he had understood.

\- " Yes and no. Let us say that you can be yourself by changing small details. Roughly, just do what your instinct tells you to do and everything should be alright. "

Natsu agreed by shaking his head, a small smile appearing on his face, apparently satisfied with this plan. And to be honest, he had not participated in a fight at the guild since he had begun to follow Rachel's advices and it seriously itched him to fight once again.

\- " Well, I think it's now time for you to go back home. Tomorrow will be a new day. " Said Rachel by putting her account book in a drawer. " Keep me updated about how things go, okay ? "

\- " Okay, let's do it like that. Goodbye, Rachel ! "

Natsu heads out of the shop, Rachel closing behind him before disappearing in the back shop, Natsu going home with a big smile on his face, already looking forward tomorrow.

/-The next day-/

Lucy and her group finally approached the guild. They had managed to get into the train at Westcoal by calming the inhabitants by promising them to take care of paying the damages even if the citizen swore they'd tell the council about it. They were now standing in front of the door, Asuka already skipping in front of the building, determined to enter it as quickly as possible. The Connells opened the door and they entered a rather quiet guild hall, which was normal given that it was still too early for anything to go out of the track. The present mages turned their heads to the newcomers, surprised seeing Gildarts with the Connells and Lucy and Cana. But the main surprise was certainly to see that they were covered with wounds, including Gildarts.

\- " What happened to you ? " Asked Makarov, clearly shocked to see them all coming back together when they had left separately.

\- " A Strizer at Westcoal. Earth one. We got rid of it, but he made us suffer, that bastard. " Briefly explained Gildarts before putting a hand on his stomach. " He even made me unable to use my magic. "

\- " WHAT ?! "

This new information was certainly too much for the guild which could just not imagine Gildarts being rendered useless. But the mage quickly reassured them before they began panicking

\- "Calm down, it's only temporary. It's a stone which I have in the stomach, courtesy of the Strizer which is going to dissolve given time. I'm even starting to feel my magic coming back little by little, but I won't be able to fight for some time."

\- "It doesn't matter. What's important is that you are all well." Answered the master before smiling. "But I am proud of you. Now, we are reduced to 5 remaining Strizers."

\- "You can especially be proud of them." Corrected Gildarts by gesturing at the 4 other mages. "They almost did everything. Even this little imp." He ended by putting his hand on the head of Asuka which smiled proudly. Which surprised the other mages, Makarov giving her a curious look.

\- "Really Asuka ? And what did you do ?"

\- "She saved my life by distracting the Strizer." Answered Lucy by embracing the girl. "She shot him in the eye with her small pistol while he held her hostage."

Everybody began smiling, shared between pride and surprise with the bravery the girl displayed, Makarov approaching to put his hand on top of Asuka's head.

\- "It would seem that the future of this guild is already assured with such recruit."

Nobody had nothing to add to that, each one of them going to congratulate and get more information from the various wounded mages when the door reopened, letting Natsu appear. The fairies didn't know how to react. For some time, Natsu had scared them with his sudden change in attitude. But as they were about to see, it won't be the case anymore.

\- "YO EVERYBODY !" Roared the dragon through the hall with his big toothy smile, back in action after one, long absence. "Before saying anything, I am sorry for my recent attitude. I tried to change, to be less childish, but it was just boring in the end so here I am again."

\- "I don't know if we can really believe that, ash breath." Threw Gray, not convinced, which changed quickly with what happen next.

\- "Nice of you to open your trap, ice prick, I have a lot of punch that need to land on your face. " He said while walking to the ice mage, the other mages now persuaded that everything went back to as it was before when Natsu stopped when he reached Lucy. " Ah, you are back, where were you ? "

\- " We fucked up some Strizer while we just wanted to rest. Nothing out of the ordinary. " Simply explained Cana, Natsu shaking his head in an approving gesture.

\- " That's great. I hope that it was not too rough … Wait, what's that key Lucy ? " Wondered the pink by taking Lucy's new key in his hands, before she ripped it away from his hand in the next second.

\- " Speaking about key, Lucy. Something strange happened with my golden keys, even Ophiuchus's one. Does something happened to yours ? "

\- " Not completely. This key is for the Stellar Spirit King. " This sentence had dropped a bombshell among the mages, in particular those knowing the King in person did not dare to believe it.

\- " It's impossible ! This key does not exist, it is a legend! " Shouted Yukino, not believing it.

\- " If it's really a legend, then Lucy is holding one in her hand. " Countered Bisca. " We saw her summoning him with our own eyes. She really called the King to face the Strizer. "

\- " It's awesome ! Lucy, you are strong as hell ! Well, you always were, but that is just awesome ! " Complimented Natsu, which made the blonde slightly blush, but then she calmed the enthusiasm of the others who already were starting to imagine things.

\- " Calm down, Okay. It is great, I understand that, but calling the old man consume so much magic that it can be dangerous for me. And he can only stay in our world 3 minutes at the most. So it's not the summoning I'll do the most. "

\- " Moreover, now that I think about it, we learnt something about those guys" Intervened Alzack. " After we have beaten the Strizer of the earth, Daniel the Strizer of the sky whom we had already beaten arrived to pick his buddy and he said that they had no interest to neutralize us definitively and that if Gildarts needed too much time to get his powers back, that could put them out of their schedule. " These words made the present mages think, Makarov in particular.

\- " That thus means that they have projects for us and that time is precious for them. " Deduced Makarov, worried before raising his head towards his 'children'. " The most important thing is to stay on our guard and to pay attention so we won't be taken by surprise. In the meantime, resume a normal activity. "

And they obeyed, each returning to their activities, the mages that came back from Westcoal Town being brought to the infirmary to be look after their wounds. As for Natsu…

\- " Well, where was I ? Ah yes ! COME THERE, ICE CUBE ! " And for the first time after quite a long time, too much to the taste of the guild, a huge fight began, chairs, bench and tables flying everywhere, sign that Natsu was finally back to his old self, much for the pleasure of everyone.

/-The next day-/

Lucy and Cana were sitting at a table, discussing everything and nothing, Lucy's gaze was glued to her glass, full of doubts, which had plunged the 2 young women into the silence.

\- " It is because of somebody. "

Cana picked her nose out of her barrel to turn to her best friend, not understanding from where this sentence came from after such a long silence.

\- " Who is what ? "

\- " Natsu. No one change their attitude so brutally overnight like that. He probably met someone that makes him change so much. " Her own sentence hurt her given that she was persuaded, without knowing why, that it was a woman and the idea that a woman could make his change so much hurt her. She was going to shed some light on that matter, mumbling her plan at top speed under Cana's disenchanted look who shook her head while sighing before returning to her barrel.

But a few seconds later, by the corner of their eyes, they noticed a detail which they had under their eyes since yesterday but which they had not took the time to contemplate. Most of the mages had changed their look, even the Exceeds were concerned. Both mages didn't understand what happened and they decided that they needed to know more about it and questioned the first person they saw, which was Lisanna.

\- " Hey Lisanna ! Cana and I had a question. " Called Lucy, the white hair mage stopping and going towards them.

\- " Yes what is it ? "

\- " We would like to know where you find all these new clothes ? You emptied up a store or what ? " Wondered Cana, which made Lisanna laugh slightly.

\- " No, not at all. There is a new store in town which sells a great deal of garment for the mages. There is absolutely everything. And the owner is really nice. " Explained the mage, her answer interesting the 2 friends.

\- " And where is this shop ? " Asked Lucy, interested in what Lisanna had just explained.

\- "I'll show you. Follow me." And they left the guild, following the young white haired mage until they finally arrived in front of a store with a white and grey facade with small pink diamonds drawn here and there. Over the shop window was attached a sign with the name of the store : "Diamonds Nest". They entered inside and Lucy and Cana were more than surprised by the monstrous quantity of clothes and different accessories, for all sizes and for every type of corpulence which were exposed on many stand. While they were still enthralled by what they saw, a desire for a shopping spree growing inside of them, a newcomer appeared, interrupting their musing.

\- "Hello, how can I help you ? Oh, hi, Lisanna !"

\- "Hello, Rachel. I would like you to meet my friends Cana and ..."

\- "Lucy. I already know her." Rachel's sudden interruption took the 3 young women by surprise, wondering how she can know the blonde.

\- "Sorry, but we never met before." Indicated Lucy, which Rachel only half agreed with.

\- "Yes and no. I was in the same train leaving Drastara. It's me who looked after your burns. They did get better I hope ?"

\- "Uh. Yes and thank you for that, even if it is little late." Thanked Lucy before realizing what it also implied. "But then, you know Natsu ?"

\- "There's no problem, and yes, we spent the whole train ride together. The kind of thing which tend to get people closer."

\- "It's even him who introduced us to this place." This sentence thrown by Lisanna was like a bomb on the 2 mages, Cana being pleasantly surprised that Natsu knows such a place but Lucy was more like suspicious about that. Why would Natsu do some advertisement for a clothing store ?

\- "Well, let's go back to the main subject. You are here in my temple ! Men, women, children, whether you are a mage or nor, all will find what they are looking for here ! You need to go on a mission on a volcano ? Do not hesitate and go for my fireproofed clothes ! Need for an evening dress for an infiltration which risks to end in fight ? A whole selection of dresses, suits and other clothes at the same time elegant and cut for the fight are at your disposal ! In need for accessories to transport and not lose your weapons or important objects ? Makeover ? Fashion advices ? The Fashion Queen is at your service ! Do not hesitate !"

Rachel's speech had enthralled both mages who now had only one desire : check the truthfulness of the beautiful stylist words. No more than 2 minutes were needed for the women to find themselves in a crazy run after clothes, literally drinking the advices from Rachel. However, Lucy remained suspicious. This girl knew Natsu, very well even according to what she said, she was a beauty queen, seemed hyper nice and she emanated an intense joy of life. But deep inside her, Lucy felt that she was a threat. She was going to shed some light on all those questions in her head and she would finally know the why behind the Natsu's strange attitude. Lucy's mental monologue was interrupted by Rachel who had left the mages just to fetch a box in the back shop which she had just put on the counter.

\- " By the way, you know where Erza is ? Her order arrived and she still hasn't come to get it. "

\- " She's not here today. " Answered Lucy, forgetting her doubts about the young woman to answer her, her face marked by a small sad smile. " She left to pay a visit to a friend who died too early. "

/- In a train -/

Erza sat in a car, watching the landscape scrolling on which the sun was slowly lying down without paying attention to. Her mind was focused on a memory. A particularly painful memory. Indeed, today was the anniversary of Simon's death, her childhood friend. She and he had been slaves with their friend Miliana, Sho, Wally and Jellal at the time of the construction of the Tower of Heaven, the tower where he was killed by Jellal, at the time corrupted by the malefic powers of Zeref. An act which had branded the former companions of misfortune. If she was in this train, it was to go to honor the memory of the young man where they had raised a small grave on his behalf, not far from the casino where Erza had, a few years ago, met her friends again for the first time since their childhood as slaves. But she was not alone in this train. Jellal was with her, the mage having been dragged along by the warrior, not feeling like he deserved visiting the grave of the one that he had killed with his own hands. But Erza had refused his refusal.

Her heart squeezed by a whole lot of feelings that flooded her, they got off the train when the latter reached their destination. Thanks to her magic, Erza had changed clothes, now wearing a simple pair of jeans and a black docker whom she had found at Rachel's and she went to buy some flowers at a florist situated not far. Walking slowly, they walked toward the beach when suddenly, Kagura and Miliana appeared from another street, arms filled with flower bouquet. There a little moment of silence, Jellal feeling even more embarrassed since he still hasn't forgiven himself for what he had done and he had a hard time staying still in the presence of the two woman who, 2-3 years ago had sworn to kill him for what he had done.

\- "It looks like we all had the same idea, this time" Noticed Erza, who was slightly amused by the situation, quickly joined by Kagura.

\- "Indeed, but it is not that bad of a situation, I am sure that Simon will be delighted to see us all gathered in the same place." She ended, making Jellal lower his head, the guilt eating him more and more as time passed by.

\- "If we all had the same idea, then let us go together. And you too Jellal." Said Erza, Jellal staying nevertheless undecided. But pushed by the group, he eventually follows them, walking beside Erza, fleeing the eyes of the latter, the knight mage making what she could to prevent him from feeling as guilty. They were so worried by the other than they walked into Miliana and Kagura, the latter having stopped brutally in the middle of the way.

\- "Uh, guys. Anybody commanded garlands and lanterns for the tomb ?" Asked Miliana by pointing at what she had in front of her, a show which took by surprise the other mages present. Everywhere around the grave of fortune of Simon had been placed colorful garlands and lanterns, as if somebody had wanted to cheer up the place. Colored skulls had been also placed here and there, and baskets full of fruits and foods were placed in front of the grave on small altars. But the most surprising was the presence of a thin man dressed in black on his knee in front of the grave, cleaning the grave while seemingly praying. This stranger, by feeling the presences of the mages staring at him from behind, turned his head to reveal a pale face with middle-length black hair and same colored eyes.

\- "Buenas Noches. If you came up to there with flowers, it might mean that you know the person who rests here, isn't it ?" He asked, not obtaining any answer, the mages too surprised to see somebody here to answer. "I hope that all those decorations doesn't disturb you. It's a tradition which I liked a lot and that I took from my abuela."

\- " What kind of tradition makes you decorate the graves of people you don't know ? " Wondered Miliana trying to clarify the situation.

\- " El Dia de los Muertos. A party to honor our dead by making diverse offerings to help them pass in the afterlife. It's also the occasion to take care of their graves. I am someone which had a lot of respect for the death, this is why I allowed myself to take care of this grave when I saw the state it was in. I hope that you can forgive me. "

\- " There are no problems. " Answered Kagura, by heading toward the tomb. " I should even thank you for doing it. For my brother. "

The stranger shook his head in recognition and went away a little, leaving the time to each mage to honor the memory of their friend and brother. When he saw that Jellal seemed to hesitate, he encouraged him.

\- "Go talk to him. Whether you feel like deserving it or not, talking to him will do good to you. Nobody lives well if he keeps such things as regrets and remorse on his heart. And especially do not hold your feelings. Let them go out, that will help you feel better. To keep such feelings locked is going to destroy you from the inside. Just say sorry. It will probably be enough for you."

Taking his courage in his hands, Jellal finally walked up to the grave, sitting down in front of the stone. He stayed there, looking at the grave sadly. And it was after several minutes of silence that he finally expressed himself, with a voice broken by the emotion.

\- " I am sorry, Simon. I am so sorry. "

By pronouncing these few words, all the feelings he had kept locked inside him suddenly got out, his eyes filling little by little with tears until he eventually began weeping buckets, brought down by regret and sorrow, Erza going to embrace him to comfort the poor guy, quickly joined by the others who too had tears in their eyes, despite feeling quite weird being so close to him. But to be honest, seeing somebody like Jellal purely and simply collapse out of grief, that was the kind of thing that could shake anyone. A sweet scene that ended brutally when the stranger decided to add his own little comment.

\- " You look submerged by your emotions. Remorse is one hell of a emotion. If you feel like excusing to Simon, I could always sent you all to him. "

The threat did not escape the mages, after all this stranger didn't even tried to be subtle about it. They all got up together, Erza advancing to the stranger.

\- " Wait a seconds. What's with that threat ? Later, you spoke about remorse. How do you know that Jellal felt guilty ? And how can you know that her brother is named Simon ? "

\- " I know that name because it's written on the tombstone." This answer made the mages sweat dropped, he actually had a point, but that doesn't explained the rest. "As for the remorse thing, it's because I made my researches, like everybody else. " The bad smile of this mysterious character and the mention of researches and 'others' made the mages minds clicked, now understanding what he insinuated, but not fast enough to dodge what came next.

 _ **PASO OSCURO !**_

A black mass appeared under the feet of the mages who were snatched in a dark whirlwind and a few seconds later, they landed on the beach not far from where they had been, the stranger materializing from a shadow, walking towards them.

\- " Well, this would be a nice place. I didn't lied by saying that I respect the deaths, so I won't fight in a cemetery or near any kind of grave. Moreover, when I say that I respect THE death, why not send her a selection of some mages ? "

\- " So you are one of them. You are a Strizer. " Concluded Miliana, before Kagura add some comment of her own.

\- " We have already beaten 7 of your companions and you think you have a chance ? "

\- " Yes. Because I doesn't fight like the others. " By saying it, a black aura filled with a blood thirst they've never seen in the other Strizers was swirling around him. " Soy Esteban Mendoza, Strizer of the darkness. Bienvenidos en mi pesadilla. "

 **OK, it does not feel good for our mages. Prepare yourselves for a fight in a rather unusual style. I hope that this chapter will have pleased you. Anyway, I'll see you next time. Goodbye !**

 **Next time: Nightmarish mental torture. Unexpected rescuers. The lights drilling the darkness.**


	18. Chapter 18 : Nightmare Jail

**Hi ! I am back to give you the new chapter of this fanfiction, the 18th. And I know that you are many to like this story, so thank you all for the support. Well, I'm not someone that is really talkative so let's not waste any more time and let's go already.**

 **Chapter 18 : Shadow games and nightmare**

The sun had now half disappeared under the horizon, letting only a weak light shine on the smooth sand of the beach, a starry sky devoid of the slightest cloud adding to the already romantic landscape which had everything needed to be the ideal place for a date. Everything was combined for a date, except the atmosphere. Indeed, the pressure was heavy and so thick you could cut it with a knife and the persons that were responsible for this unusual pressure stood on the beach, two groups facing each other. On one side stood a single man, dressed in a long sleeve black pullover, a pair of pants of the same color and black sneakers, his unkempt dark hair falling on his face, hiding a part of it but letting see his jet-black eyes who shone with a slight sadism, a toothy and dark smile on his face. In front of his stood a group of 4 people, more exactly mages, Erza, Jellal, Miliana and Kagura, their faces marked by the apprehension after they had been ejected by their opponent from where the grave of their friend and brother Simon had been raised. They gauged their opponent, looking for a possible approach, which was hard given that the only indication they had on his powers was the fact that he was probably some kind of darkness user, which augured no good. Either way, they had no time to think about it any longer because Esteban was the one who attacked first.

 _ **FLECHAS OSCURAS !**_

In one second, a multitude of black arrows appeared from the darkness behind him and rained down on the mages who, being all experienced fighters, had no difficulties dodging the arrows which crashed on the ground, although they really were numerous. In the middle of the assault, Miliana threw herself at Esteban.

 _ **NEKOSOKU TUBE !**_

She threw her whip-like magic weapon at the dark Strizer but a dark mass appeared on her trajectory, countering the attack and repelling the young woman with the same black wall which he had called. But at the same time, Jellal began his own assault.

 _ **METEOR !**_

He suddenly approached by using his high speed but when he was about to reach the Strizer, the latter used a little trick of his own.

 _ **PORTAL OSCURA !**_

A shadow suddenly appeared in front of Jellal who was unable to slow down and was absorbed by the mass of shade before re-appearing then next second from the wall which had stopped Miliana and since he hadn't lost his speed and had been taken by surprise by what had just happened, he collided with the catgirl mage quite hard, both mages finding themselves on the ground, rendered breathless by the violence of the shock. It was then Kagura and Erza's turn to attack, the latter wearing her Heaven's Wheel Armor, both young women rushing with their swords in hands.

 _ **SLASHING FORM !**_

 _ **TRINITY SWORD !**_

Both swordswoman slashed at the Strizer at the same time, the air pressure of the attacks digging deep furrows in the sand but regrettably, the Strizer had suddenly disappeared to reappear further away, going out of the ground before pointing a hand covered in an black aura towards both mages, the shadows between them suddenly swelling as if they were being filled with water.

 _ **SOMBRA EXPLOSIVA !**_

The dark bubble exploded like a over-inflated balloon and the mages were blown away, joining Jellal and Miliana, the only man of the group seeming to have realized the trick.

\- " He just controls shadows. That will be easy to counter now that we know it. "

\- "Hey ! What's that, did you really underestimate me so much ?!" Spat Esteban, irritated by the idea that his power could be reduced as much as that. "It is true that the shadows are a big part of it and one of my favorite weapon. But I have more than one trick in my bag. And I'm going to love showing it to you." But he had barely finished his sentence that he felt as if his body suddenly weighed 5 times as heavy, folding under the sudden strength which had for origin a certain brunette, allowing Miliana, Jellal and Erza to spring into action once again. But Esteban only smiled while standing up once again with no problem, the mages looking at him surprised, not understanding how he could move freely in spite of the heavy gravity pressing on him.

\- "As I just said, let me show you what I can do."

 _ **PLACAJE GRAVITACIONAL !**_

The 3 attacking mages were suddenly pressed down to the ground by a gravity like force which stopped them brutally in their assault while pushing them several centimeters into the ground before the strength subsided as quickly as it had come, letting the 3 mages to try and get over the commotion, Kagura looking at the Strizer with big eyes filled with surprise.

\- "Xun is the light and the sun. Thus by being his perfect opposite, I am the shadows. BUT !" He broke off suddenly. "Xun is not only that. Since the sun is a star, he also are the stars and all kind of shiny celestial bodies. So I also have an affinity with space too and is there something dark you can find in space ?"

This question seemed completely out of context for the 3 girls but Jellal understood and his eyes opened wide with fear by understanding what it meant.

\- "Black holes !" The three young women became afraid by realizing what it could involve, fear which became more marked when a black mass formed in the hand that Esteban was pointing at Kagura.

 _ **HOYO NEGRO : ASPIRACIÓN DIRIGIDA !**_

The black mass then began sucking everything that was in front if with such a strength, Kagura was torn away from the ground despite her gravity power which she had used on herself to try to protect her from the inhalation but it didn't worked and she got dangerously closer to the Strizer which was smiling like a madman.

 _ **ORBE DE GRAVEDAD !**_

While all thought that Kagura was going to be destroyed by the black hole, the latter suddenly took off from the hand of the Strizer, now acting like some kind of cannonball which crush Kagura's rib cage by pushing her away until she reached the others, landing in a large cloud of sand. While they got up, Esteban continued his explanation to the mages.

\- " And since I have black holes by my side and they are bodies with an infinite mass, I also learnt to control gravity. I am thus not only a ' _hombre de sombra'_. But I still haven't said anything about the favorite part of my power which made me so different than the other Strizer. But now that the lighting is good, I am going to be able to show you my 'illusions'. " He ended while looking at the moon which began to appear behind him, her silvery light drawing long shadows on the beach while quoting the word illusion with his fingers.

\- " Illusions? " Repeated Erza before a small smile appears on her lips. " Sorry but if you really did your researches, you should know that I am not really perceptible to this kind of trick. "

\- " Did I forget to mention that 'illusion' was not exactly the good term to describe this power ? "

Then he whistled, a noise which reverberated in the night, the silence answering him until rustling noise, that was become louder as time passed by, was heard, accompanied with a howl which was strangely familiar for the mages. Then a big black mass suddenly land on the sand between the Strizer and them, Esteban suddenly looking a lot more smaller as if he suddenly jumped a good ten meters away. By looking at their surrounding closely, they realized that everything had gone away from them and had grown, as if they had become smaller themselves. But when the sand-colored cloud, lifted by the fall of this strange entity fell down again, they were all paralyzed with fear.

Scales as black as the darkest of the nights, covered with bluish marking, covering a body of a good dozens of meters long, the down part of his body being grey colored. His long forked tail beat the sand in a rhythm echoing his impatience, immense wings which, like a roof, covered the mages and preventing them from seeing the sky, but the most impressive thing was his aura, which was filled with an anger and a thirst of destruction that none of the mages had felt before in their life. They were paralyzed, refusing to believe it, but the aura this massive body was releasing, the small tremors on the ground each time he moved, his growls filled with hatred which made their body trembles so much and the heat of his death smelling breath on their skin, there was no doubt possible.

Acnologia was standing in front of them, alive and well.

\- " N-No, it's impossible ! Natsu destroyed him ! " Miliana, with tears in her eyes exclaimed by trying to move away but without succeeding, as if her brain was too disturbed to make her body move.

Others would have loved to answer her, but they were speechless and for probably the first time of their life, they were truly afraid. A fear which paralyzed them, preventing them from moving a single bone to try to defend themselves. Erza got up nevertheless, calling upon her swords but her armor disappeared as soon as she had put it on and after that, she was not able to call any of her armors, as if her magic had been shut down. Defenseless, she found herself powerless in front of the dragon of chaos which began to approach them, the mages feeling like at each step he was becoming even larger and monstrous. Sweating bullets, the mages could do nothing, or rather their bodies refused to move. Acnologia then opened his huge mouth, bluish flames which shone like thousand stars filling his throat, ready to let them out. Erza managed to get over her paralysis and tried to flee, something that she would have never did under normal circumstances but she had no other choices and tried to go to put herself in a safe place but no matter where she went, she was literally trapped, the beach stretching even further at each step she took. A howling accompanied by an intense light was felt behind her, she turned around, seeing her 3 friends disappearing in the flames, turning to ashes in a matter of second until the same flames finally reached her, her body disappearing in the flames, a white veil falling in front of her eyes.

Then everything stopped. Erza found herself sitting on the sand, back on the beach that was back to its usual shape. But did all of that even happened ? There was no remains that could attest of the presence of the dragon, Esteban had not moved and still looked at them with a naughty gleam in his eyes, the 4 panting mages, as if they had just woken up from a horrible nightmare.

\- " What was that ? " Wondered Jellal, getting his breath back while Kagura got up with difficulty.

\- " I really thought that you were all cooked by that dragon, it seemed so real. "

\- " How did you do that ? " Erza, amazed wondered. " Illusions don't work on me, normally. "

\- " Look at your shadows. " Simply answered Esteban, the mages obeying in spite of their perplexity and they realized that there were sorts of black lines similar to snakes slithering in their shadows. By following the tendrils to their origin, they discovered that they all came out of the Strizer shadow, which was darker than the other shadows.

\- " Did your shadows did that ? How you can use your shadows to show us things like those ? " Wondered Miliana.

\- " The shadows are basically the reflection of our own person, but not only the reflection of our physical body. It is an immaterial entity which never leaves you, like your soul and spirit, in a way. 'By infecting' your shadow with mine, I can reach your spirit and your brain and I can use it to make you live, not feel, live, a whole lot of things. This is why I cannot really use the term of illusion. An illusion is when make someone perceive thing by playing on their 5 senses, like lighting and colors effects to deceive the sight. This is why I prefer the term of nightmare. "

\- " If you like that kind of power, why did you didn't used it immediately ? " Wondered Jellal.

\- " Since we are at this point, better explain everything. " Began Esteban. " Where Xun is the sun and the day, I am the moon and the night. Of this fact... "

 _ **KITTEN BLAST !**_

 _ **PLEIADES !**_

\- " Eh ? " Esteban was suddenly struck by a coiled tube of pink energy which burst when it came in contact, pushing him back as 6 rays of light fell from the sky and exploded on him, making him kneel down. By seeing that Kagura and Erza had moved to attack too, a grin took shape on his lips.

\- " What a dirty little trick. But I said that I would give some explanation, and I will explain them. " He began dodging the attacks of the mages, while resuming his explanation. " During the day, Xun takes advantage of the power of the sun to reach his full power, where I can only use my shadow to attack unless it directly gets in touch with other shadows so I can infect them. On the other hand in the night, Xun have to limit himself to artificial light sources, like lamp for example, which are never as good as the sun whereas I can control and infect freely the shadows created by the light of the moon. Which means that as long as the moon will be up in the sky … "

Keeping the end of his sentence suspended for now, Esteban call upon the darkness, dark masses suddenly sprigging out of all the shadows surrounding the mages, including theirs, the Strizer smiling grimly.

\- "… I have no dead angle. "

 _ **CORTAR REMOLINO DE LA SOMBRA !**_

The dark masses grouped together to form a whirlwind which inhaled the mages, throwing them towards the sky by slashing at them from all around, before sending them to the ground. Esteban had not finished however.

 _ **TRABA NEGRA !**_

Black strands came out of the mages shadows, winding around their legs to nail them on the spot, the mages trying everything that they could to release themselves but unsuccessfully, the shadows re-forming immediately when they were destroyed.

\- "It's useless, don't try to free yourselves, I'm not going to let you leave that fast. Now that you know all this, it is time for me to make play my favorite game. Let us see who of you will be the first to be broken by my nightmares."

 _ **SOMBRAS ROBAR : ILLUSION DE PESADILLAS !**_

/- Miliana -/

Miliana opened her eyes and she saw that she was in a dark room, a weak light coming from a tiny opening in a wall and made her understand that wherever she was, it was dark. She tried to get up, because she was on her knees but she was blocked by something that bound her feet together. By looking down, she saw that it was chains who attached her to the wall behind her. More than that, she saw that she wore a short pale blue dress which was really worn out. With horror, she recognized this holding, since she had carried it for a long time in her childhood. In her childhood as a slave. The room got more and more clear and she realized that she was back in the tower of Heaven and it felt so real she felt like she never left the place. She was in a cell similar to the one into which she and his friends had been locked in the time. But this time, she was alone and through the bars of her jail, she saw other people, dressed in the same clothes as her, which worked under the eyes of guys dressed in long black hooded dress who whipped the slaves without any form of pity. Miliana tried to struggle but she discovered with dismay that her magic had disappeared. This alarming realization arrived at the same time as a man who was now standing in front of her, having entered the cage silently. By looking at the newcomer closer, she recognized Jellal but not the one who was with her on the beach. It was the one that he was when Zeref had corrupted him.

\- " Well, Miliana. I was told that you persisted in refusing to do your work ? " He told in a sweet voice which made her shiver with discomfort. " Do I Have to remind you once again what will happen if you continue to persist ? " He then threw in front of her something which fell heavily with a thud on the ground and Miliana's cry tore the silence. On the ground was lying the dead body of Sho, blood trickling down from his half-open mouth. Miliana tried to throw herself on him, but her wrists had suddenly found themselves attached to the back wall by chains, preventing her from approaching. " I would have thought at least that you would have agreed to do your part to allow your friends to survive, but it seems like you preferred to see all 3 of them dead. " The words of Jellal pushed back Miliana, who touched the stone wall by curling up to be as far away as Jellal as possible, realizing what he meant.

\- " No. They cannot be dead. It's a bad dream, I am going to wake up ! " She repeated to herself like a mantra, her brain being assailed with images showing her Erza, Simon and Wally, all in the same state as Sho, trying to go out of this nightmare, but the burning pain from the whip she received on her face brought her back down to Earth. This pain was too real to be only an illusion.

\- " You wanted to save yourself from sufferings, right ? Well I am going to make sure that you suffer more than ever in your life. Sirs, she is all yours. " On these words, he left the cell, closing the door behind him, leaving only Miliana with hooded men who seemed to be more and more numerous and big as they approached her, diverse torture tools in their hands.

\- " No. What are you doing ? No ! NOOOOOOO ! "

/-Kagura-/

Kagura, from her part, hadn't changed clothes, she was in the same clothes as those she had on the beach but she was in the dark, in a really narrow space that forced her to squat. The only source of light came from a small opening the size of a CD reader. Approaching the small opening, she took a look by the hole to try and see where she could be and what she saw made her let out a gasp of surprise. She saw Rosemary's village, her and her brother Simon home town, but also where Erza had grown. She understood now. She was in the sort of container in which Erza had hidden her when the people who wanted to build the R system had attacked the village. Kagura did not understand what all this meant, until Erza and Simon appeared in her field of vision, or to be more precise their younger selves, which were running and playing together. This show made a light smile appear on her face, but it only lasted one time. Flames suddenly appeared, setting the village on fire, Erza and Simon getting engulfed in flames too while still playing with a smile before getting reduced in ashes. Then, the hooded mages appeared, shouts ripping through the air in the village, filling the ears of Kagura who began to struggle in her prison while seeing the mages kidnapping the children, killing those who resisted too much. Soon the corpses of people Kagura knew and who lived in this village piled up in the ruins of the village.

 _" You did nothing to protect them."_ Said a hoarse voice which addressed Kagura. _" You did nothing to help them. YOU could have been able to save your brother and Erza if you had gone out of your hiding place. But you did nothing. Because you are a COWARD ! "_

\- " NO ! It's false ! I am not a coward ! SHOW YOURSELF, WHOEVER YOU ARE ! " She roared, struggling more and more without succeeding, not able to bear anymore what she saw. The landscape outside changed and she found Jellal, who faced Simon, the latter just killed by the first one.

\- " NO ! ANYHTING BUT THAT ! NOT MY BROTHER ! "

 _" You sentenced him to death by letting these men do as they pleased. What do you think he thought of that ? "_ Threw the voice, the crack closing and Simon, his eyes white and his voice hollow approaching her.

\- " Kagura. Why did you abandoned me ? What did I do for you to abandons me like that ? " The vision of her brother and his voice full of reproach was too much for Kagura who felt tears swell in her eyes.

\- " No. I did not abandon you. I… I … "

 _" You let him down. Coward … Coward … Coward... Coward … "_

\- " STOP THAT! "

/-Jellal-/

Jellal needed some time to become used to the light that was too strong for his eyes compare to the darkness of the night but when he finally got used and could see where he was, he was in shock. He was standing in the center of a blue crystals looking platform with spikes which raised themselves towards the starry sky here and there. Looking down, he saw that he had changed his clothes. Basically, he wore a long black hooded coat that was strangely familiar to him. Quickly doing the analysis, he understood that he was back on top of the Tower of Heaven, but he will quickly realize that he was not alone. By looking a little farther, he saw two bodies laid out on the ground which he recognized, rushing to them.

\- " Natsu ! Simon ! What is that ? What's going on ? " He put his hand on the nape of their neck and was struck by horror.

\- " T-They are … "

\- " Dead indeed. "

Jellal turned to this voice, almost breaking his neck in the process, feeling like he heard it somewhere before, and came face to face with Zeref. The dark mage looked at him with a certain pride whereas Jellal looked at him as if he had just seen a ghost. Which was the case in a way.

\- " What ? What the hell is happening here ? You are dead. "

\- " You do not remember ? I would have thought that killing 2 innocents in cold blood would be rather striking. It would seem that you and I have a lot more in common, my dear assistant. " Jellal was suddenly paralyzed, shaking his head like he was refusing to believe what he had just heard.

\- " I AM NOT LIKE YOU ! AND I AM NOT YOUR ASSISTANT OR I DON'T KNOW WHAT ! " He roared, feeling the guilt of his pasts acts starting to return.

\- " But nevertheless, you did things even I would have feeling guilt about doing. To sacrifice his only love to brought me back, I couldn't be prouder than you, Jellal. " The over sweet voice of Zeref struck the mage deep down in his heart while the latter put a hand on his shoulder, a gesture that he felt perfectly, excluding any possibility that this was a nightmare. He then remembered himself of the real function of this tower. He shot his head toward a flat piece of crystal which was standing of the ground. In front of the latter, he saw a sword, a sword which he recognized immediately, making him rush at this stone, falling on his knees just in front of it, his spirit breaking, realizing that the worst scenario he could have ever imagine had just became a reality. He had killed Erza.

\- " ERZA ! No, I did not do that. I DID NOT DO THAT ! NOOOO ! "

/-Erza-/

Erza stood in the middle of Magnolia, or rather, what was left of it. The city was in ruin, flames dancing on the rests of the houses and corpses were lying here and there, no matter where she looked, there were corpses. In front of her, the HQ of the guild was in flame, the symbol of Fairy Tail devoured by the flames while the building was falling down. All of her friends, her only family, had been reduced to nothing, their bodies unrecognizable because of the violence of what they had undergone. She knew this landscape of destruction by heart. It was the 35th time that she underwent this torture. She tried everything : she tried to fight but without ever managing to overcome anything because her magic was melting away like snow in the desert, to run away but the streets stretched every time, giving her the impression of not moving. In the end, she always end up dying, powerless before going back at the beginning and reliving the massacre of her family, again and again, the shouts of agonies filling her soul with each repetitions. Eyes filled with tears of frustration, she turned then to the persons in charge of this massacre. In the middle of the ruins stood Zeref, who looked at her disparagingly but the most horrible thing for her was to see Jellal, always under the influence of the dark mage, looking at her with the same sadistic air as the time of the Tower of Heaven. They walk on her as she fell to her knees, already knowing what they were going to say, having heard it far too often.

\- " Here is a very interesting show. The great Titania giving up so easily. So weakness. Jellal, my dear friend, abbreviates her sufferings. "

The latter obey his master, approaching Erza, who didn't even tried to move, even when Jellal forced her to raise her head, a gaze filled with sadness and frustration meeting another one filled with satisfaction, villainy and mockery. Like every other time, her voice came back only to pronounce a single sentence, in a hope that this time, thing would be different.

\- " Jellal. Don't do that, please. "

But as for all the previous times, he held not counts of her words and plunged his hand in Erza's upper body, piercing her heart without even batting an eye. And life left the body of Erza Scarlett, killed by the only man who she never loved.

For the 36th time in a row.

/- Real World -/

Esteban looked with a sadistic pleasure at the 4 mages who twisted themselves like worms, tortured by the nightmares which he was making them live. He had however a slight headache which began to come. Maintaining a mental manipulation of this level on 4 people at the same time needed a big effort, especially that it manipulated the parts of the brain bound to the 5 senses to made the nightmares more than real. However, while he was looking at his victims, he was disturbed by an unexpected guest, that he recognized without looking at him, which made him heave a sigh of frustration.

\- " What the hell are you doing here, _cabrón_ ? " Asked Esteban without turning around, knowing very well that Xun approached as indicated the noise of his steps in the sand.

\- " I simply came to make sure that you do not over do it this time. " Indicated the Strizer of the sun by approaching his colleague, his arms crossed.

\- " I don't see what you're talking about ? " Answered Esteban by pretending not to understand while perfectly knowing what Xun was referring to.

\- " I'm speaking about your barbarian way of doing things. " Answered Xun by looking at the 4 mages. " The last time you did that, your victims had to undergo therapy to recover. It is not something that we can allow ourselves to do with them. We need them in a good shape, not traumatized. "

\- " Please. They are not as weak as that. " Esteban, already tired by his colleague, sighed. " Go back to your own business and let me work. " To answer the question, Xun began shining brightly, a bright flash which lasted only a moment but which was enough to irritate Esteban.

\- " Stop your bullshit, asshole ! " The dark one suddenly roared, the cry giving birth to a deep pain at his temples. " Return to the HQ and leave me alone. "

\- " Very well. I am going to let you do as you please. Good luck. " And on those words, Xun went away without any further ado, which surprised the other Strizer who did not expect him to leave for real, or not that quickly and quietly. But what he ignored was that Xun, who hated this way of torturing people, whom he qualified as barbarian, had left a ray of hope to the mages. A literal ray of hope.

Indeed, while they were still trapped in those never-ending nightmares, where they had no more notion of what was the reality and what wasn't. However, the discharge of light had weakened for a single moment the shadows which freed, for just one second, the mages who saw their nightmare sizzle like a television which signal was becoming weak, a ray of light enlightening their field of vision for a brief moment. It had only lasted a fraction of a second, but it had been enough. Taking advantage of the fact that they got back the control over their sense and brain, they concentrated and gave everything they had. The sudden surplus of intellectual activity multiplied tenfold Esteban's headache who had taken his head between his hands. The 4 mages, by their will only, were at the same time getting over the brain control but also submerging the Strizer who had more and more difficulty to keep it under control. And after several minutes, he collapsed on the ground in a cry of pain, whereas the 4 mages just recovered, finally getting out of this nightmarish world, deeply inspiring, as to convince themselves that they were back.

\- " Is it … Is it finished ? Oh thank you my god. " Said Kagura feeling relieved that her ordeal was finished. She got up, the shadows threads around her having disappeared, which also was the case for the others who got up in their turn.

\- " It was horrible. " whined Miliana, still shocked. " It was so real I feel like I have scar on my body because of the whip slash. "

\- " Let's not speak about it anymore and finish it there. This guy have done enough. " Declared Erza by beginning to approach the Strizer.

 _ **ARNÉS DE LA SOMBRA !**_

The shadows of the mages suddenly got out of the ground and wound around their owner, preventing any movement. In front of them, Esteban had held out a hand towards them, a knee on the ground and their back turned at them.

\- " You are going nowhere ! " Mumbled the Strizer by getting up, grinding his teeth. By turning around to face the mages, the latter realized that he had a big nosebleed, his face distorted by anger.

\- " I won't let this Xun bastard throw away MY fights ! "

\- " Then it was him, this light that we saw ? We will need to thank him for the little help. " Noticed innocently Miliana, a small derisive smile on her lips.

\- " It looks like your group is not as united as that if there is that much rivalry between yourselves. " Jellal laughed, seemingly not bothered by their current situation.

\- " My relationship with Xun is very particular. " Explained Esteban by approaching the mages slowly, while wiping the scarlet liquid which flowed from his nose with his hand, the other one covering with shadows. " Everything in us is opposed, our powers, our personalities, our way of living and our way of seeing the world. The only things that we have in common are that we are both guys and that we are a part of the same group, having consequently the same objectives. And if the situation requires it, we know how to put aside our difference to work together. And just to be clear, you would have never be able to get out of my nightmares if his light had not weakened my shadows, _comprende_ ? " He ended his explanation by brandishing his shadow covered hand, looking like a big black claw but had no time to use it.

\- "What about my light, then ?"

They had no time to understand where this new voice came from that a playing card crashed in the sand at the Strizer's feet. Nobody understood where it came from and the mystery was only thickening when the card began shining with an intense light similar to that of the sun, blinding the Strizer and mages while dissipating the shadows which held them prisoner.

 _ **POLYGON MAGIC : CUBE RUSH !**_

While he still had his sight disturbed by the bright flash, Esteban was struck by a multitude of purple cube which threw him back on several meters, landing heavily in the sand. When the eyes of the Strizer and mages had finally recovered, they saw 2 new people standing between the mages and the Strizer, a blonde young man with tanned skin and dark beady eyes, and another man in purple suit wearing a hat with a white scarf around his neck and characterized by a literally cubic silhouette. A vision which made Miliana and Erza smile, Kagura surprise by those stranger appearance, but Jellal was feeling a little ill-at-ease, not knowing if those guys, like the girls, had forgiven him.

\- " Sho ! Wally ! "

\- " It looks like being late was not such a bad thing. " Remarqued Sho by collecting the now blank playing card.

\- " To be late is not something that a Dandy like me usually does, but saving his friends is cooler than everything. " Said Wally, in his usual attempts to be cool.

\- " Tch. I hadn't planned that. " Growled out Esteban by looking at the blood which still flowing of his nose, even if the flow had greatly weakened. " Well, it look like I won't be able to send you all back into my nightmare world. Too bad, but it's ok. We shall do it just like old times. "

The mages took back their position, ready for the fight, in front of the Strizer who did not seem to be bothered by the disadvantage in the very least. A thing was sure, with the arrival of Sho and Wally, the mages had restored their self-confidence.

 **OK, the nightmares thing, it was an idea which I had in mind for a long time, but I had some uncertainties concerning the way of using it. And I also wanted to show other kind of relationship between the Strizers, in particular by pointing at the opposition between Xun and Esteban. I hope that you liked this chapter and that you will like the next chapter. See you next time !**

 **Next time: one against six under the moonlight. Making amends. The knell of midnight.**


	19. Chapter 19 : Shadows and lights

**Hello again ! I hope that you are all fine ! This 19th chapter is going to begin quickly but before, I would like to warn you. My rhythm of publication shouldn't change but I'm going to begin writing another fic, a new version of my Kamen Rider x Fairy Tail crossover. If you're interested you, go on my profile to see it hen it will be published. The first chapter will arrive shortly. In the meantime, let's go back to our business and let us start this 19th chapter.**

 **Enjoy !**

 **Chapter 19: shadows and lights**

The tension was thick. This piece of seaside, usually a place of relaxation and enjoyment for the tourists and the locals had lost its usual atmosphere, the air now so heavy that it was almost difficult to stand up. The now 6 mages still faced Esteban, Strizer of the darkness, the track of blood dried crossing its lips, who showed a bad smile in spite of the fact that he was in disadvantage, thing which did not seem to hamper him more than that. The mages, conscious that the Strizer was not an opponent like the others, didn't made the error of underestimating him. Wally and Shô, being in better shape than their friends, threw a first offensive.

 _ **DIMENSION CARD RELEASE : EXPLOSION !**_

 _ **GUNS MAGIC : POLYGON SHOT !**_

Shô threw a card on which was drawn an image, hyper realistic, of an explosion whereas Wally, his arm transformed in a cubic cannon shaped like a pistol, shot a polygonal bullet which gave the impression that it was pixelated towards the Strizer. The latter just shrugged and lift both arms toward the mages.

 _ **REDIRECCIÓN DE LA SOMBRA !**_

Two shadows got loose from the ground and stood on the trajectory of the projectiles which disappeared in the dark masses and reappeared immediately the mages own shadows, Shô and Wally were struck quite hard by the attack of their partner, throwing them on the ground whereas Esteban, estimating that it was still not enough, prepared an attack which the other mages knew well.

 _ **HOYO NEGRO : ESFERA ATRACTIVA !**_

The same black sphere appeared in the hand of the Strizer before being thrown like a grenade in front of him, the sphere beginning to attract both mages who found themselves prisoners once they came in contact with the sphere. It did not dealt them any damages, but it render them vulnerable to another attack that Esteban already prepared. From their part, Jellal, Erza, Kagura and Miliana observed the situation, as if they had discovered something and tried to verify if they were right.

 _ **INVOCACIÓN OSCURA :**_ _ **HACHA DEMONÍACA**_ _ **!**_

Calling on to all the shadows he could gather, Esteban summoned a gigantic ax with a toothed, jagged and irregular blade which raised up behind him, brandished by what seemed to be a devil's arm made of shadows. Shô and Wally was unable to go out of their prison, at least this is what Esteban thought. Suddenly, without warning, his black hole had disappeared, Wally and Shô throwing themselves on the sides to barely avoid the ax, the latter coming down on the sand with so much violence that the air pressure generated by the blow sent them even farther. Esteban did not understand how his trap could have disappeared like that but he had no time to think about it because he was cut by Erza.

\- " I see. I think I understood how it works. " She exclaimed mysteriously, Kagura nodding her head in approval.

\- " Indeed. I think that this fight is going to become more and more simple as time pass by. " Added the swordswoman, a victorious smile on her face.

\- " What is that ? I don't understand. " Admitted Miliana who had nevertheless observed the Strizer as closely as the others, obtaining an explanation thanks to Jellal.

\- " He controls the shadows generated by the light of the moon, but the closer we are to midnight, the more the moon is upright and consequently, the generated shadows are smaller. As time pass by, he have even less tools to fight. " Explained the mage, although he remained worried. From his part, Esteban made a small grimace.

\- " You are smart, I have to admit it. But don't go thinking that it's going to be a problem for me. And you don't know everything neither. " The threat seemed hard to believe, especially as Jellal was not going to give him the time to prove it.

 _ **METEOR !**_

The mage threw himself as fast as he could on the Strizer as the latter didn't have the time to get ready to dodge and took the fist of Jellal right in the face. But he also took the opportunity to catch the mage and punch him back, which took the mage by surprise, going away from the young shadow man to stand next of his friends, a hand massaging the cheek that the Strizer had struck, feeling like he was disappointed.

\- " But … It is weak. " Declared Jellal which made Esteban growl, looking away whereas Erza seemed to realize something.

\- " One minute. When Lucy returned after she faced the Strizer of the sun, she told me that he was a great very short-range and hand to hand fighter. If both of them are perfects opposite when it comes to their fighting style, then … "

\- " Hand-to-hand fight is his weakness! " Deduced Miliana, ending the explanation of Erza with big eyes. Esteban was not delighted that such a thing had been revealed like that. From their part, the mages, decided to exploit this newfound weakness recently bare, all rushed and attacked the Strizer, weapons and magic ready to burst out but Esteban was decided to keep them away from him.

 _ **GRAVEDAD CERO !**_

A wave of invisible and untouchable energy propagated around the Strizer and extended to cover the whole beach, the mages interrupted in their running while their body had immediately begun floating in the air as if they were swimming in the ocean's depth. They struggled as they could but they were incapable to move suitably because of the total absence of footings. Esteban, delighted to see his opponents trapped in his zone of zero gravity, spent several minutes just having 'fun' with the mages, sending them to crash ones against the others by playing with their own gravity, crushing them on the ground and any other shape of beating he could found. After a while, he began floating too, approaching a panting Erza which tried to cut her opponent in pieces but regrettably, her swings couldn't even reach him.

\- " Well then ? We have a hard time attacking correctly, aren't we ? " Provoked the Strizer by kicking Erza in the ribs which made her fly dangerously high, the knight struggling to try to find a way to go back down but without succeeding. Esteban got ready to do the same to the others when he noticed Kagura, hand stretched towards him and feeling his body growing heavy, which made him smile.

\- " You REALLY plan to crush me with that ? I am not of the kind of guy to be crushed down that easily."

\- " You shouldn't be such an egocentric person. When you are, you tend to forget whatever happen around you. " An advice full of wisdom but that Esteban did not understand. At least not before feeling an overwhelming presence approaching him dangerously from above.

 _ **REQUIP : PURGATORY ARMOR !**_

Like a black and thorny meteor, Erza, propelled by the Kagura's gravitational magic was falling dangerously fast towards the Strizer, her spikes covered mace aimed at him. Raising his arms, he caught the mace, the ground collapsing under his feet, digging a wide crater under the weight of the assault which Esteban couldn't bear as much as he wanted. So, he called his own shadow which, like a battering ram, violently collided with Erza to send her far away, but not as much as he would have believed which was easily explained by the fact that the gravity seemed to have returned to its normal state. Taking a look at Kagura, he understood that she managed to "cancel" his zero gravity by applying her own gravity to the beach. He, however, had no time to rest because Shô, Miliana and Wally had launched their own assault. However, Jellal, who observed his friends fighting against the Strizer, noticed something strange.

\- " I don't understand. " His remark caught the attention of Kagura and Erza. " The punch he gave me later was weak, but just now he stopped, even if it was only for a brief moment, an attack as violent as that. There is less and less shadow but it's as if he became stronger at the same time. There is something strange. Maybe we're missing something. "

 _ **ORBE OF GRAVEDAD !**_

The 3 mages had gone out of their wonderings by hearing the Strizer resort to this technique that they had already had the opportunity to see. While they were thinking, their friend tried to keep Esteban busy, the mages and the Strizer exchanging blows but the shadow user was stronger and he quickly got the upper hand, pummeling the 3 mages. Back to the present, the gravitational cannonball was thrown in the direction of Miliana, who was too shaken by the blows which she had received to defend herself. But Shô appeared in front of her, protecting the young woman.

 _ **CARD MAGIC : DIMENSION STORAGE !**_

Shô took one of his cards in his hand, which began shining, then he placed the card on the trajectory of the orb which, when it came in contact with the card, disappeared. When the card stopped shining, the other persons present, with the exception of Wally, saw with bewilderment that an image representing the orb had just appeared on the card.

\- " What the fuck is that trick ? " the Strizer wondered loudly whereas the card shone once again.

 _ **CARD MAGIC : DIMENSION RELEASE - GRAVITY ORB !**_

With a swing of his arm, he threw the card at the Strizer, what had the effect of releasing the same orb of gravity that Esteban had casted a few seconds ago.

\- " These cards can store much more than just people now apparently. " Noticed Esteban, a hand raised to stop the missile. " It's not bad, but this thing belongs to me. I am going to take it back. "

Except that the orb did not stop. Esteban was shocked to notice that this orb did not obeyed him anymore. As a result, he tasted his own medicine and was throw backwards, taken by his own attack. Without the Strizer realizing it, Wally had teleported behind him, his arm up.

 _ **POLYGON MAGIC: BLOCK PUNCH !**_

Wally's hand became enormous and took the form of an enormous fist constituted of purple blocks that he used to swing at the Strizer, hitting him on his back. A rough shock which also provoked the explosion of the orb which crushed Esteban in between two explosion before being sent back towards the mages, more precisely meeting Miliana, all claws ready.

 _ **NEKO SLASHER !**_

Filling her claws with magic, she slashed at the Strizer, touching her target which gave a cry of pain before going to collapse on the sand a little farther, his face and upper part of his body covered with scratches, blood staining his body while he got up with great difficulty. For the mages, the fight had finished, considering the visible physical weakness of their opponent, combined with his propensity to favor remote fighting. But nevertheless, he got up, clearly bashed up, but apparently not annoyed by the situation.

\- " Sorry to disappoint you, but my magic soaks what goes out of my cards to avoid inconvenience of the kind 'return to sender'. " Explained Shô, a derisive smile on his lips.

\- " Tch. I wasn't expecting that. " Admitted the Strizer while wiping messily the blood which flowed in front of his eyes. " I guess that it might be a good time to switch up to another level. "

 _ **PUÑETAZO OSCURA !**_

He ran and caught Miliana and send a fist covered with darkness in her stomach, making her spit some bile in an impressive sheaf whereas her body was thrown far off, caught mid-flight by Shô. But regrettably, in a flash, he was in front of him, taking him by surprise. He was going to strike the cards mage when an outside intervention prevented him from doing so.

 _ **GUNS MAGIC: 32 FPS SHOT !**_

A cubic cannon appeared suddenly between the Strizer and the mages, opening the fire at point-blank range, riddling the body of the Strizer with 32 squared bullets by seconds, a good part of which were dodged, but allowing Miliana and Shô to go away while giving Jellal the possibility to counterattack.

 _ **PLEAIDES !**_

Taking his usual stance, Jellal revealed 6 rays of light which crossed the sky, going straight ahead to the Strizer which did not move, but he didn't need to. He stretched then folded up an arm, as if he had just pulled on something and indeed, Sho was suddenly attracted towards him as if he had been pulled by the collar of his jacket. Esteban caught him and placed him over him, in front of PLEIADES, acting as a human shield, which paralyzed the mages, their bodies frozen on the spot.

\- " NO, SHO ! "

Regrettably, their shouts changed nothing and the rays of light exploded when they came in contact with Sho which let out a tearing roar of pain before falling heavily on the ground, totally motionless.

\- " SHO ! "

 _ **POLYGON MAGIC: CUBE RAM !**_

Wally changed into many blocks and charged brutally the Strizer in his stomach making him move back, breathless but still standing, leaving however enough time to Wally to get Shô back and return him to his friend, Kagura and Erza observing him in shock, Wally seemed to fight against his own tears and Miliana, remembering her nightmare, wept buckets by taking Shô by his shoulders, begging him to wake up between two sobs. Jellal, as for him, observed the motionless body of the young man and the sadness of his friends, himself froze by the horror of what had just taken place, Esteban not missing the opportunity to point it to him.

\- " Well, it looks like it's a habit of yours to kill your friends. First Simon and now him. My word, you're a devil. "

Jellal saw himself once again on the Tower of Heaven, laughing at Simon's sacrifice and saw again the look of Erza, full of hatred towards him at this moment. His knees gave up and he fall to the ground on his butt, shaken and incapable to think about something else than his past acts. Especially as he would have widely had time to save Shô with Meteor but his body had refused to move. It was, by the way, an observation he was not the only one to have made, Kagura and Wally turning to the Strizer, eyes full of hatred.

\- " What did you do to us ? Why couldn't we move ? " Asked the swordswoman by brandishing her sword, threatening to unsheathe it.

\- " You bastard ! You are going to pay, I promise you ! " Threatened Wally, pointing his cannon shaped arm towards the Strizer, ready to fire.

 _ **GUNS MAGIC : POLYGON SHOT !**_

 _ **DISTORSIÓN DE LA SOMBRA !**_

Wally opened fire but his cannon went astray at the last second, the bullet hitting Kagura in her back, tearing away a small cry from her, mixing pain and surprise.

\- " Wally ! What are you doing ? Why would you shoot on me ? " Exclaimed Kagura, always beside Shô.

\- " I, I don't know. My arm moved by himself. " The explanation was light but Wally didn't know how he could explain what happened. Erza did not wait for the situation to explain itself and rushed at the Strizer, in her RABBIT ARMOR, a sword in each hand. When she came in contact, Esteban welcomed her with two daggers made of shadows.

\- " I'm not going to let you torment Jellal anymore. He had already enough things to feel guilty about because of his past and I won't let you add another layer to it !"

But as she was getting the upper hand, being better with blades than Esteban, she was suddenly thrown once again to the side, as if her body had moved alone.

\- " Well, I'm fed up, what is that ?! "

\- " DISTORSIÓN DE LA SOMBRA. I modify the position and even the shape of the shadows I infected or which are created by the moon. And since a shadow is inseparable of an object or a person, the other one is obliged to comply with the changes, like staying in one place if the shadow choose to stop moving. It had been a moment since I had used this technique, I missed it to be honest. " Esteban ended his small monologue with a slightly sadistic laughter before advancing on Jellal and Miliana, who had not still moved, while pushing away constantly the assaults of Kagura, Erza or Wally, by repelling their own shadows or by twisting that of their weapons and attacks to make them miss their target. Erza, which began to seriously be afraid of the safety of 3 mages who were on the ground, covered herself with her GIANT ARMOR and threw with all she had the De-Malevo-Lance on the Strizer but once again, his shadow manipulation turned out to be a problem. He stopped the spear dead in its track, still air-borne, before making it rise up to the sky, and relaunched it with all its original speed towards Shô, Miliana and Jellal, Erza, Kagura and Wally kept at a distance to prevent them from intervening.

\- " NO ! THAT IS ENOUGH ! JELLAL, DO SOMETHING ! JELLAL!? "

The shouts of Erza had reached the ears of Jellal, but he did not move, was it because his shadow was locked too, or maybe it was the doubts due to what Esteban had reminded him with his nightmare and the attack on Shô. He was the only one to be able to stop the spear and he made nothing, his brain totally disconnected from the reality.

\- " JELLAL, NO ! "

 _ **CARD MAGIC : DIMENSION STORAGE !**_

While everything seemed lost, the spear had suddenly disappeared, a playing card falling slowly while oscillating from right to left under the dumbfounded looks of the 5 mages and the Strizer.

\- " Are you going to stop complaining or not ? "

A broken voice had pronounced these words, a voice coming from Miliana's lap, on which rested Shô, now awakened.

\- " Shô ! You are alive ! " Exclaimed Miliana by squeezing him in her arms before going away a little, her cheeks red. Redness which could also be found on Shô.

\- " A little shaken but I'm okay. " he then turned to Jellal, his face heavy with seriousness. "Don't let yourself get shaken like that, man. We forgave you a long time ago, Wally and I. You were not yourself and to hate yourself for that will not brought Simon back, and punish yourself for it won't fix anything either. "

\- " He is right. " continued Wally, who was standing besides Shô, a hand on his hat, cigar between his lips. " If you want be forgiven about Simon, if you really want it, kept on living and fight for what he wanted to protect by giving away his life. That's what we do, when we're real dandy. "

The last comment of Wally made a small smile appear on Jellal's face who disappeared when they heard Erza and Kagura shout with pain before landing with them.

\- " Kagura, Erza! Are you okay ? " Worried Miliana, her face having found its usual colors back.

\- " We're doing what we can, but this guy, he became really strong all of a sudden. " Following the look of both friends, they saw that indeed, Esteban seemed suddenly more powerful. And they also remembered themselves that he had won in power with every minutes which passed since the beginning of the fight. If there was a logical explanation for this phenomenon, they had not found it yet.

\- " We are approximately one and a half minute away from the final. You gave me one hell of a fight but I'm going to send you all to this Simon very soon. "

This comment looked more like a provocation than anything else, but Erza realized something there. Glancing at her watch, she saw that it was 11:59 pm. She search in her memory, trying to find something similar in her memories. Then she understood.

\- " THE HOUR ! " Her exclamation, brought out of nowhere, took by surprise the other mages and made Esteban smile. "It's as Xun. According to Lucy, the Strizer of the sun power grew every minute as the sun approached its zenith, which was for him synonym of maximum power ! And if this guy is the night … "

\- " Ding-ding-ding! We have a winner! _Felicitación_! " Esteban exclaimed with a derisive laughter. " Indeed, just like him, my power increases with every passing seconds as we got closer to midnight. And when we finally reach midnight, my power reach its peak ! "

And just as he finishes his sentence, Erza's watch passed from 11h59 to 00:00 am.

Suddenly, the full moon began shining even more, bathing the Strizer in a silvery light which formed some kind of bright halo on his body, swearing with his usual blackness. Raising his arms to the sky, the lunar light gathered in his palms, forming wide whitish spheres which were crossed by black stripes, sign that shadow power where involved in the spheres. Feeling the power of what was going to come at them, Erza made the only thing which, according to her, would be enough to stop it.

 _ **REQUIP : ADAMANTINE ARMOR !**_

Wearing her white and navy armor, she took a stand in front of her friends, her shields raised and ready to take the attack which felt like it will be something far more powerful than anything they had seen him use up to now. The others watched her, not intervening but it didn't meant they felt comfortable with it. Jellal in particular was looking at Erza's back with a worried look before he suddenly began shining like a spark, having made a decision. From his part, Esteban gathered the power of his spheres into one, forming a big silvery orb who looked like a miniature version of the moon.

 _ **LUZ DE MEDIANOCHE : CANON PLATEADO !**_

The big mass of light was thrown with the speed and the strength of a cannonball towards the mages, enlarging for each meters it traveled, fed by the moon which bathed the beach in an unreal aura, which could have given the impression that the scene had been taken out of a dream. The missile got in touch with the mages and exploded, a wave of white light illuminating the night as if a second moon was just born in the white sand. When the light had finally fade away, the result of the explosion was still hidden by a cloud of sand lifted by the explosion but for the mages, there was at least one person who was perplexed regarding what just happened.

\- " Wow. Erza, you did it. " Complimented Miliana, helping Sho to get up. But the armored mage was not sure if she deserved the compliment.

\- " No, I did nothing. My barrier almost didn't take any damage. " This revelation took the mages, but also Esteban who had heard the conversation, by surprise. But there was a simple explanation to that and the veil of sand which was falling down was soon going to reveal it to them. And indeed, there was a very good reason why Erza had taken nothing from the attack which had nevertheless made her slide a good meter back. Jellal was standing in front of them, arms outspread and head lowered, his body smoking and clothes torn by the discharge of energy.

\- " Jellal ! But why did you do that ? " Asked Erza, not understanding why he had intervened while she had the situation under control. Esteban from his part especially wondered how he could still stand, a fact that began to annoy him.

\- " Sho, Wally. You are right. " These simple words gained the attention of the mages who looked at the back of Jellal with curiosity, in particular the both aforementioned guys. " I punished myself for what I did in the past without realizing that by staying prisoner of my past, it prevented me from living in the present. As from this day, I promise to make amends of my past faults by protecting everything Simon believed in. My friends. "

These words touched the mages who went to testify of their friendship to Jellal, but Esteban, not being a big fan of this kind of show, was going to have to cut it short. Especially as it was now 00:01 am, meaning that his power was going to decrease with time.

 _ **ABSORCIÓN DE LA SOMBRA : CAPA NEGRA !**_

The mages turned their head to the Strizer and were faced with a show which they had not planned. Well decided to finish this as quickly as possible, Esteban had covered his whole body with his own shadow, being transformed into a man completely made of shadow with a long black cape and some sort of mask which covered his eyes, replaced by a multitude of white eyes, as brilliant as quartz crystals. With a swing of his arm, he called upon a real tidal wave of shadows which broke out towards the mages, like a wall coming to crush them.

\- "Erza, I have an idea." Began Kagura turning to the mage with the blood colored hair. "You're with me ?" She asked with a confident smile on her lips, smile which Erza returned to her immediately.

\- "Always".

Esteban looked at his black wave who was about to beat down on the mages when suddenly, two white lines similar to notches made by knife appeared on the wave who was cut in two like the Red Sea by Moise. Out of the opening came Kagura and Erza, the latter carrying the MORNING STAR ARMOR, holding two swords in her hands, Esteban gauging his opponents. Knowing that he could not face the two at the same time, he threw a mass of shadows which forced Erza to jump high in the air to dodge, leaving only Kagura on the ground. Kagura attacked, swinging her weapon down on Esteban who intercepted Archenemy with both hands. Or rather, what he thought was Archenemy. Indeed, he saw that he had no katana in his hands, but a guard less sword. Before understanding what happened, a second sword, identical to the first one and that she held in her other hand, cutting his stomach. He wanted to take advantage of the grip that he had on the sword he held to hurl a fatal blow at Kagura, but an intense light coming from just above him dispelled most of his defense, allowing Kagura to neutralize him even more by sending a violent kick in his family jewels, making him bend with pain. Kagura took advantage of it and got away to let Erza attack, the latter quickly coming down, thanks to Kagura gravity, and Esteban raised his head just in time to see where was Archenemy.

In the hands of Erza, ready to came down on him.

With a jump which was only due to a reflex born from his survival instinct, he dodged the fatal blow, although the sword had left a notch on his face.

 _ **TRUE HEAVENLY BODY MAGIC : SEMA !**_

Esteban raised his head just in time to see Jellal taking his stance and a mini sun began appear in the sky. Having no other options, he turned to his shade.

\- "Sorry, but that's not part of my projects. See you later. _Adiós_ !"

\- "You're going nowhere, man !"

While he got ready to run away thanks to his shadow, Esteban was interrupted by Wally, who had just teleported the top of his body in front of him, raising a disproportionate arm and got ready to strike him.

 _ **POLYGON MAGIC : BLOCK CANNON FIST !**_

Wally's arm got loose from his body, catapulting the Strizer right towards Miliana, whom claws were all out. She welcomed Esteban with a series of slashes on his body, her claws penetrating into the flesh of the Strizer repeatedly, before leaving it to Sho, who threw a card at the foot of the shadow man.

 _ **CARD MAGIC : DIMENSION RELEASE - DE-MALEVO-LANCE !**_

Erza's spear, whom Shô had stored earlier, got out of the card suddenly, piercing the Strizer in his right shoulder, tearing him away from the ground and sending him straight ahead towards the miniature sun upon which Jellal had called earlier. Not being able to escape, Esteban hit the small star which exploded, creating an explosion which dissipated the darkness of the night, making the beach shine as in broad daylight for a few seconds. After a few seconds, a carbonized body fell heavily on the ground. The mages thought they had finished it, but the calcined body began grumbling while getting up, staggering under the weight of the wounds he accumulated, covered with blood from head to toe, a hateful and mentally ill look fixing the mages who were amazed.

\- "Wow. For a sickly thin looking dude, he knows how to take blows." Commented Shô, whereas Erza, feeling something strange, had changed armor, now equipped with the CLEAR HEART CLOTHING, Crimson Sakura in a hand and Kagura's Archenemy in the other one.

\- "I … won't… GIVE UP !"

 _ **TERIÁNTROPIA OSCURA : DEMONIO ARAÑA !**_

Esteban, having clearly let his refusal to give up known despite of his state, had gathered what power was left in him and transformed into a monster, which looked like a black anthropomorphic spider and covered with shadows, that grew up more and more, under the dumbfounded looks of the mages.

\- "Yes, that's it!" Declared Esteban with a hollow voice which had nothing human anymore. "Contemplate my power ! You are nothing against m …"

 _ **SLASHING FORM !**_

 _ **CRIMSON SAKURA !**_

*SLASH* Esteban was interrupted by Kagura and Erza which, swords in hands, had just crossed in an instant the distance which separated them from the Strizer, being now some meters behind him, raised swords and closed eyes, whereas, without the even the slightest shout, he took back his previous form, two wide gashes forming a cross taking shape on his stomach and torso while he fall on the sand, finally defeated. The mages gathered, satisfied with the result, even if all was not that nice. Jellal for example, had just collapsed, the damages that he had undergone by taking for the others the lunar attack returning to him suddenly, now that the adrenalin had fallen down.

\- " Well, hum, I didn't expected such a fight. I still have a headache because of his nightmares. " Admitted Miliana by sitting down next to Shô, Wally sitting down next to the cat girl.

\- " Yeah, it was rough. But there is now only 4 left, isn't it? It is a good thing. " Kagura said positively while cleaning Archenemy, but Jellal, who sat against Erza who kept him straight, did not share her enthusiasm.

\- " There might be only 4 remaining, but we can't let ourselves go. They are certainly going to be even more dangerous from now on. "

\- " Let's forget it. It doesn't matter for now. " Said Erza, not wanting to stay on this subject for now. " Nevertheless this fight did taught us something. "

\- " Yeah. That you should not let the past prevent us from living. " Completed Jellal, stand up a little more to face Erza. " From now on, I focused on the present. " And he the kissed Erza who, after some short seconds of surprises, returned it under the cheers of the other mages. Soon, the laughter of the mages resounded in the night, forgetting the complicated evening which they had just lived whereas a little farther, over a grave decorated with multicolored skulls and garlands, floated the transparent silhouette of a tall and muscular man, wearing a white turban, looking at them with a smile, more appeased than he ever was.

 **And here we are. I feel that it was a little bit fast in the end maybe, but I am rather proud of this chapter. I hope that you liked it too. We will soon be back for the next chapter. Goodbye !**

 **Next time: Reviewing the mission. Confrontation with the seller. The golden key of Isvan.**


	20. Chapter 20 : Meeting and confrontation

**Hi ! Hey, isn't that the symbolic 20th chapter ?! It's something to celebrate ! Or not, it is as you want it. Personally, it make me happy but nothing more and I am just going to keep writing this chapter which I offer to you wholeheartedly. In today's events : mission review, jealousy and confrontation. A golden reward ?**

 **Go, good reading to you all!**

 **Chapter 20 : Meeting and confrontation**

/- Strizers HQ -/

\- "AAAAAAAAHHHHHHH, _hijo de puta_ , it hurts !"

\- " What did you expected ? Did you Saw the wounds you received ?"

The Strizers sighed before going back on their own activities, ignoring the agonizing shouts of Esteban who wounds were being sewn closed by a man with dark hair raised on his head, now dressed in white male nurse's blouse, his ambers eyes locked on his patient wounds, the latter simply laid out on a table, which did not pleased him at all.

\- "You could at least, I don't know… Ouch ! Put me on a real operating table, Stan !"

\- "There is a good reason why I didn't do it, Esteban." Answered Stan by approaching his face to his patient to give him the reason, which was just one word. "Laziness."

\- " _HIJO DE_ … Ouch !" Esteban had got up all at once to make Stan understand that that reason was awful, but the pain of his wounds stopped him. "You could at least hurry, I am going to end up stuck on the table if I don't move from here soon."

\- "I am the doctor, you move if I tell you to move. So stop pitying yourself or I would bitterly make you regret it, understood ? And anyway, concerning the table, you know well that I do not move my patients if they suffered too many damages so not to make their state get any worse. Which is clearly your case. Thus if you do not like this table, go complain to Kareem. It is him who dropped you here."

Indeed, a few hours earlier, Esteban's body, at the moment lengthened on the beach where he had been beaten, had disappeared, absorbed by the sand, under the dumbfounded eyes of the mages who were still there, and he had reappeared on the table of their lounge, under the also surprised eyes of the other Strizers, Stan understanding what he had to do. While Esteban was still being sewn, the other Strizers attended to their usual activities. Vincenzo prepared the lunch, Xun and Dmitri played chess, Mizuki and Daniel were fighting at one of their video games, under Jameson's eyes, which had nothing else to do and Alexander who was occupied with a jigsaw.

\- " Anyway, while I patch up this idiot, did we obtained any results with the mages? " Asked Stan, still tilted on Esteban who did not move anymore and was moreover the first one to answer.

\- " I think, yeah. Jellal, Erza and their group are not pulled back by their past anymore. Their global performances will feel the effects of it, I think. "

\- " It's similar for the fire dragon. " Added Jameson by looking over his shoulder. " He still got a long way to go to handle his feelings correctly, but he is on the right track. "

\- " Generally speaking, they all won in power. " Commented Alexander by thinking again about Lucy and his meeting with King of Stellar Spirits. " Some more than others. "

\- " So there is good and bad news, then. " Began Stan. " On the good side, we needed them to reach an upper level of power which his already the case. On the other hand, I really think that we should have explain the situation to them, or maybe even lie to them a little, I don't know. If they could follow us by themselves, that would be the ideal. "

\- " Yeah, but there is already 2 who are ready to take action. So that is going to have to wait. " Reminded Mizuki without letting her eyes leave the screen, her fingers mashing the button on her controller.

\- " But there will be two left that would have done nothing. " This voice came from a newcomer, who entered the room with a thick book under his arm, addressing Stan. " Since you really want to play it diplomatically, that we have not met the mages yet and because I am not a big fan of meaningless fights, we can always go there later. When our 2 companions will have finished their own little business. What do you say to that ? "

\- " It is a good idea. We are going to do that. But let us be all ready to jump into action. Our deadline could come faster than planned. "

\- " All of this is nice. Very cool. Now, it's not that I'm not dying out of boredom, but I still have my guts in the open. So finish your fucking job, Stan. "

Except that Stan now stared at him, his yellowish eyes reflecting clearly the fact that Esteban had just crossed the limit.

\- " Ah, you want me to do it fast ? No problem. " He then grabbed a bottle full of disinfectant, that he opened with one hand, without removing his gaze from his, Esteban's face scowling slightly. " I'm going to be blunt, it's going to sting. " Understanding what was about to happen, Esteban's face decomposed.

\- " No, man. Don't do that ! "

Except that Stan was not listening to him anymore and spill all the contents of the bottle on the body still covered with wound of his shadow colleague, which let out a roar of pure pain that would have destroyed the eardrums of the others if they hadn't fled the place as soon as they understood what was about to happen.

\- " WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU ?! STOP THAT ! STOP ! "

\- " Ah sorry, but you told me to make it fast and it is what I am going to do. So stop crying and assumes your choices. Doctor order. "

\- " AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! "

/-In a forest next to Magnolia-/

\- " AAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH! "

This forest, usually full of wild life, looked more like a totally empty forest, which was due to this shout which had just broken the ambient peace, a shout which was more over the last one of a long series which had disrupted the peace of this place since a few hours now. The reason : Lucy, who was training relentlessly and who had just reached her limit for today, knees on the ground, panting, a metal light blue key twinkling in one of her hand.

\- " I … I still need training. But I can make it. I am sure of that. " She commented for herself, before getting up, and heading to the city, gazing at the key in question which she always had in her hand.

" It is much harder than with the others, but I was expecting it. We are talking about the King of the Stellar Spirits. " Said Lucy by rethinking about her trainings that she had imposed on herself. She was however aware that her mind, as Capricorn ever so subtly noticed, was disturbed by question that never stopped coming back to her mind and they were all directed to Natsu. She still had no idea about what had made him change so much lately and this mystery was almost becoming an obsession by moment. By now she had just reached the city, her head lowered, lost in her thoughts not noticing where she went and collided with somebody, falling behind and landing on her butt on the paved ground.

\- " Ouch ! "

\- " Lucy ? Are you okay ? "

Raising her head towards this voice she knew quite well, she was faced with Erza who was holding her hand out to her, the rest of her group next to her.

\- " Yes, thank you, but I think I should be the one asking that question. What happened to you ? " Asked the blonde mage, worried about her friends. Indeed, Erza, Jellal, Kagura, Miliana, Shô and Wally were nastily all bashed up, signs that they had a relentless fight not long ago. It didn't took a long time to Lucy to understand what happened. " You met a Strizer, isn't it ? "

\- " Yes. And it was by the way the evil twin of the one that you had faced at Akaruidesu with Rogue, Yukino and Minerva. " Answered Kagura, Lucy making a face by remembering this fight but without understanding what she meant by 'evil twin'. By seeing that the blonde seemed lost, the swordswoman smiled and explained more. " It was the Strizer of the darkness and the moon. "

\- " Oh, I see. But I thought that you went to visit Simon grave ? " Asked Lucy to Jellal and Erza, obtaining an answer from Shô.

\- " And it is what they did. And that's where we all met. But he was there also. Apparently, he was waiting for them. "

\- " We were late. " Cut in Wally, when he saw that Lucy had opened her mouth to ask why Shô had said 'apparently' if he was over there. " We found them prisoner of nightmares he did. "

\- " It was horrible. But even without that, he was dangerous. I am very happy that this guy is down for the count. " Sighed Miliana, still a little shaken when thinking again about the horror of her nightmares.

\- " Well, the most important thing is that you are all alright and that there's one more out for them. 4 left, I think. " The blonde explained by smiling, making the other mages smile until Jellal notices the blue key which was still in Lucy's hand.

\- " Lucy, what is that key ? I didn't know that there were blue ones. " asked Jellal, curious, but he was in for one of the biggest surprise in his life.

\- " It is the key of the King of the Stellar Spirits. He entrusted it to me. "

\- " WHAT ?! " Nobody expected that. The jaws of Shô, Miliana and Wally crashed on the paved street, Kagura opened wide eyes and Jellal looked at the key completely in shock. Erza already knew and, smiling, began dragging her friends up to the guild.

\- " Come on, guys. Get over it. We have to get to the guild and explain what happened to the master. I'll explain all I know about that key if you want. " Except that Jellal wasn't not only disturbed by the key, but also about the context of its apparition.

\- " Wait, Erza. This key was only a legend, nobody had ever seen it before this day. It was a myth. And when finally it appears, sent by the King himself, it is when we are dealing with opponents from another world. " This theory made Erza lose her smile, getting his point and now feeling like something bad will happen. " I have the impression that something much worse than them could come soon. "

Left behind by the group, Lucy kept going on her way to her home, decided to get rid of the sweat and the dirt left by her training when she saw something that triggered her curiosity. Natsu was crossing the street a dozens of meters in front of her, looking around him as to make sure that he was not followed before rushing into a building. Intrigued, and sure that she was finally going to be able to clear up the reason behind his recent changes, she followed him and paused for a moment when she noticed the shop she had ended in front of. A white and grey facade covered with small pink diamonds. In Lucy's head, everything suddenly clicked perfectly. She knew that this woman had something to do with that. She then approached the shop window and looked inside. She couldn't hear a thing, but it wasn't important. The time had come to discover what he was hiding.

/-In the store-/

Rachel was folding cardboards that she had just emptied, the new articles already ready to be sold, when she heard the small doorbell ringing. By getting up, she saw a bundle of pink hair which was very familiar to her, Natsu approaching her with a big smile.

\- " Hey, Tsu-kun ! It would seem like you are in top shape, today ! What happens to you ? "

\- " Don't call me like that, Rachel. " Whined Natsu resting on the counter. " You know that I don't like this nickname. "

\- " Sorry, I had to do it. "said Rachel with a small laugh before crossing her arms and pressing them on the counter, pushing her breath out even more. " What brings you here ? A problem ? And no, I won't change my position, Natsu. " She ended with a derisive smile before keeping on with the teasing, putting her hands on her breasts pressing them together with a small sulky pout. " Why do you almost never react to those, hum ? They are not good enough for you ? "

The Dragon Slayer looked away, slightly embarrassed, his face split by an amused smile by seeing her playing with her breast, but he shook his head, as to say ' she's incorrigible ' and turned around towards her.

\- " Forget that. And you perfectly know how I can resist to that. "

\- " Yeah, I know, your heart is taken and regarding breasts, you saw, and TOUCHED, better. " Said the young woman, mocking the dragon, by releasing her breast, giving a look at Natsu by insisting on the 'touched' which made him redden slightly. " Well, enough fun for now. Why are you there ? " With his face back to its original colors, Natsu also remembered why he was there.

\- " I wanted to thank you. "

\- " For what ? " She wondered, raising an eyebrow.

\- " For your advices. Since our last meeting, everything went better with everyone. They don't see me as a madman anymore, everything became like before, but at the same time, I feel that my relationships with the others improved. Even if I felt like I'm not really making any progress with Lucy. But anyway, it's all thanks to you." He suddenly took Rachel's hands in his own, looking at her in the eyes. " This is why I want to thank you. Can I do anything to repay you ? "

\- " Don't worry for Lucy, it will get better. And no. It was my pleasure to help. I don't need to be rep … " Rachel suddenly stopped by a pang of doubt before a satisfied smile appear on her face, the young woman began searching in a drawer. " In fact, I had forgotten but there is maybe something that you could do to repay me. Especially since we could say that we are even after that. "

\- " And what would that be ? " Answered the mage, apparently interested. Rachel put some time then brought out of the drawer a lollipop which she put in her mouth and a paper.

\- " You know that I like helping people's out. All my friends know that. " She began, resting on the counter, playing with the lollipop in her mouth without paying attention to it, eyes fixed at Natsu's ones. " So they don't hesitate to ask me for help. And sometimes, it's something I cannot do by myself. And this is one of them. "

With this, she slid the paper towards Natsu, the contents being strangely familiar to him. And for a good reason because he had seen similar things on the request board of the Guild.

\- " But it's a mission request ? Where did you get it ? " He wondered by looking at the paper, clearly surprised seeing one here.

\- " I am going to explain to you. I have a friend who lives in the North of the country, in the region of Isvan, in a town renowned for the rare fishes they fish in the sea not far from their home. Their city is not very far from the sea which is accessible by the river which crosses the city. But one day, huge ice block suddenly appeared at the end of the river and since then, they are unable to reach the sea, which is starting to drag down their economy. " Rachel marked a pause, taking her lollipop in her hand before starting again, her face suddenly joyful. " My friend knows that I settled down in a city with a guild and that's why he sent me the announcement so that I can entrust it to you. "

\- " But why didn't you directly sent it to the guild ? " Asked Natsu, not understanding why Rachel kept a request in her drawer.

\- " Because I said to myself that you would want to do this mission more than the others. " Admitted Rachel by turning the poster to him. " Look at the reward. "

Natsu looked at the poster, quickly passing on the image which showed the said blocks of ice, which were actually impressive and apparently made by magic, the descriptive text which was basically what Rachel had told him and thus stopped on the reward which made him did a double-take. At the bottom of the poster was written the following text :

 **Reward : one of the 12 golden spirits keys.**

\- " But it is impossible! Lucy and Yukino already have them all ! It has to be … " Natsu stopped, realizing that his assertion would have been true a few years ago. Lucy missed a key. A key which she only have simple fragment now. " The siren one. The key that Lucy had sacrificed when we faced Tartaros. "

\- " Imagine her reaction if you return with that key. She will be very grateful to you. Very grateful. Maybe she'll even do some things as a way to thank you. " Rachel had let her voice take a voluntarily low and teasing tone by playing with her lollipop with her tongue, Natsu smiling stupidly, reddening by imagining the scene.

\- " Thank you for that ! I'm sure that she'll love the surprise. " He thanked Rachel by seizing the paper, Rachel looking at him with a wounded pout.

\- " What ? You're not even going to pay me for this great opportunity I found for you ? "

\- " Sorry, but I have nothing to pay you, Rachel. "

\- " It doesn't matter. " And she grabbed him by his collar, pulling him in and quickly kissing him, not leaving him time to react. It only lasted a second before Rachel stopped it and began laughing by seeing the flushed face of the young man, still under the shock, the young woman pulling out her tongue playfully. " That will be enough for me as payment. Now stop standing here and go. You have a job to do, isn't it ? "

But while Natsu turned to head to the door, he saw Lucy entering the shop. She was covered with dust and sweat but Natsu still found her as beautiful as ever. On the other hand, she was not smiling, and he knew enough about her to know that this light in her eyes was a clear sign that she was a few seconds away from exploding.

Basically, she was pissed.

/- A few minutes ago, POV Lucy -/

Finally. Today I'm going to finally know what caused those recent changes in Natsu. Well, first thing first, they seem to know each other well, that explains their big smiles. But what is she doing? What is she doing with her breast, that bimbo ? Who does she think she is ? Well, she can do what she wants. That is of no use with Natsu, he is as innocent and naive as a … DID HE JUST LOOKED AWAY !? SERIOUSLY !? HE IS EMBARASSED ?! But since when does breasts makes you flustered ? Almost all the girl in the guilds have tits like those and you never felt embarrassed by them ! My.. OUR breasts aren't well enough for you ? AND HE BLUSHES ? But what did you do to this Natsu, dirty witch !? I knew it. He did met somebody. But what can he find in her ? She is nice, I can't lie about that, I witnessed it myself. But for the rest, she just has top model's body and that's it. And in what kind of world does Natsu grab a girls hand like that ? Wait, what is she doing ? What is that paper ? And why a lollipop ? Aren't you already enough of a teaser like that, was it really necessary to adds another touch to your flirter appearance ? Hum. Natsu seems to listen carefully. It's a pity that I can't hear a thing, I would like to know what they are talking about. And what is on that paper? In any case, that seemed to surprise him. And he is happy ? I have to know what's on that thing. Stop with your lollipop, you, he doesn't even know the name of what you're suggesting, you slut. But why is she sulking, now? Pff, she's such a kid. A kid who … WHAT !? DID SHE REALLY DID THAT ? DID I SAW IT CORRECTLY ? BUT YES ! SHE KISSED HIM ! WHO DOES SHE THINK SHE … ARGH ! I CAN'T STAY THERE AND DO NOTHING !

/-Return in the shop-/

\- " Hi, Luce. What are you doing here ? " Asked Natsu on a friendly tone, trying of defused the Lucy-Bomb before she set off, but it was waste of time.

\- " Don't you worsen your case ! " Her tone taking Natsu of-guard, the blonde gesturing to the paper which he had in his hand. "What is that ?"

\- " It is nothing. Absolutely nothing. "Quickly said the dragon by sticking the poster in his pocket and as Lucy was going to start speaking again, Rachel cut her off, her tone dry and authoritative.

\- " I don't see what this has to do with you. You're not his mother. " Lucy turned to her, pointing at her in the same way you'd point someone who did something unforgivable.

\- "You stay silent, you bitchy girl ! I saw everything ever since Natsu entered here. Who do you think you are, teasing him with your breast, kissing him like that and suggesting him things he doesn't even know the name of with your slutty lollipop trick ! I won't let you …" Lucy now seemed unstoppable, but Natsu silenced her by a remark which took by surprise her.

\- "I think that you wanted to say a fellatio." Lucy turned her head to Natsu so fast that we would have almost been able to hear her cervical snap, the blonde looking at him with big surprised eyes. "Yes, Lucy, I know what that means. And moreover, you have basically just admitted to have followed me here, meaning that you spied on me. So you hold it against me when I don't trust you enough, but you have no shame of spying me ? It's a little bit selfish, don't you think ?" His tone wasn't mean or anything bad like that, but his eyes reflected that he felt disappointed in Lucy before he turned back to Rachel. "Finally, I think that you were right. They really see me like some kind of kid." He turned around again towards Lucy, his expression showing clearly that he was fed up with the fact that everyone was treating him like he was immature. "Well, here is a flash news for you : I am not immature anymore. Well, not as much as before. Well, it's not that I'm in a hurry, but I have a job to do. Later, girls."

\- "Goodbye, Tsu-kun." Said Rachel with a wave of her hand. Lucy, her, had remained silent whereas the dragon left the shop, leaving both girls alone, Lucy still looking at the door, with Rachel waiting for a reaction.

\- "A job ?" Repeated Lucy, recovering with difficulty from what had just happened.

\- "Well, yes, a job. What do you think that paper was about ? An invitation to a swinger party ?" Rachel laughed before beginning thinking, a hand rubbing her chin, speaking to herself. "Hey, it is not bad idea."

\- "Not a bad idea ? You find that a swinger party is a good idea ? But you really are a … a …" Lucy struggled to end her sentence, not daring to say what she wanted to, as if something prevented her from doing so. But Rachel ended her sentence for her.

\- "Bitchy girl? Bitch? Slut ? Whore? Am I getting close ?" Lucy was almost paralyzed to see how Rachel apparently didn't gave a fuck about what she was thinking of her. "You know what ? I am going to explain everything to you. After I met him in the train, I offered my help to Natsu. I saw that he was the naïve and innocent kind of guy, but he was too naïve and innocent for his own good. So I gave him advice to lose, or at least reduce, this part of innocence. And he confided to me that he never have felt as good as nowadays."

\- "Yeah, right, and the kiss was a part of the 'training' isn't it ? What do you want of him exactly ?" Lucy was really angry and she was determined to make this bitch spill everything she could but Rachel was not going to put her in a very comfortable situation.

\- "I just try to help a friend. And even if I wanted to 'play' with him, I don't see how it could concern you." Lucy looked at her outraged but Rachel, her smile having disappeared long ago, had not finished. "You are neither her mother, nor her girlfriend, whom he doesn't have by the way, so if one day, I want to flirt with him just to get him in my bed, you wouldn't have anything to say since it's his life, not yours."

\- "I know enough about him to know that the girls who show their body all day and who wear revealing clothes leaving little room to the imagination are not his kind of girl." Lucy showed a victorious smile, sure to have scored a point but the neutral expression on Rachel's face and her right eyebrow, suddenly raised to disappear under her fringe, made her understand that it had not worked as well as what she had planned it. And by following Rachel's gaze on her body, she remembered herself that she was still in her training clothes, worth knowing hair held in in a high ponytail, skin-tight sport bra and short shorts as skin-tight as her top. In other words, the kind of clothes which shows her body and left little room to the imagination. She raised her head to meet Rachel's victorious smile. "Okay, I get it, I am not the one who can say that."

\- "You see, the more I listen to you and the more I say to myself that it is you who needs to grow up. He said everything to me you know. He understood that you had gone away from him because of his immaturity and careless behavior which had led to Happy's fugue, and I completely understand you about that, I would have done the same thing if I was in your place. But after that, even when you saw him collapsing in your arms in the middle of the street, when he demonstrated feelings that you thought he was incapable of feeling, you kept your distances all the same. And when he began to behave in a little more mature way, you ran away from him because he was too different from before, when he was immature. From the way I see those things, you keeps him away because you don't know how to feel anymore, and at the same time, you are worried that he can, now that he became the same as before, change again and then lose him once again. I know that you lost your family, but is that a reason to make your friends pay for your fear of being alone ?

Rachel's monologue had plunged Lucy into a kind of lethargy, the words of the seller striking her quite hard. But the mention of her parents made her suddenly completely awake.

\- "WHAT ? HOW CAN YOU KNOW ABOUT MY FAMILY ?!"

\- " Heartfilia is not a very common name, so I did some research. Your mother, your best friend, died while you were only 10 years old, something like that. Afterward, your relations with your father degraded: negligence, rejection, a childhood filled with sadness which led to your fugue. Then you broke any form of contact just to make sure you'll never lose the new life you now had at the guild. And when you finally reconciled with him, after 7 years of absence locked on an island, you discover that death took him too, leaving you without any relatives left. The fear of losing someone dear to you once again can make us do not very recommendable things, and it is what is happening to you at the moment. You don't want to lose Natsu so you're meddling with his life but that kind of egoistic behavior is going to do a lot more damages than confronting your feeling head on like any adult would do. "

*BAM* The blow was send without any form of warning. Lucy had planned to slap the fashion queen smug smile out of her face, but along the way, her fingers had curled into a punch and it's a right hook that would do for a professional boxer that struck Rachel in the side of her face, sending her crashing into her clothes rack, the seller looking at the mage with big surprised eyes, a hand on her bruised cheek which already began to swell and to turn blue. On her side, Lucy was stuck in an endless cycle of hatred. Rachel's words had already irritated her but adding her family in the equation had been the straw that breaks the camel's back, tears accumulating in her eyes whereas she looked at the seller with burning eyes filled with fury, the shameless beauty giving her a derisive smile in return.

\- " Oh. Did I hurt the princess feelings ? "

But Lucy was not going to take jokes anymore and did something that Rachel had not planned. The blonde threw herself on the brown haired girl and beat her black and blue with such a violence that Rachel was unable to do a thing to defend herself. After a few minutes, Rachel was covered with dark blue mark and scratches, her clothes tattered and feeling like her whole upper body was aching with unbearable pain.

\- " SHUT UP ! LISTEN TO ME CAREFULLY, YOU BITCH ! I DON'T KNOW WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE, BUT YOU'D BETTER STAY AWAY FROM NATSU AND THE GUILD, OR THE NEXT TIME I'LL SEE YOU, IT WILL BE TO TEAR THAT SLUT HEART OUT OF YOUR BIMBO TITS MWITH MY BARE HANDS ! "

And seething with anger, she left the building, going back to train herself instead of going back home like she initially planned to. She needed to let go of all this stress and unfortunately, the forest won't be back to its peaceful state before a long time. From her part, Rachel got up with difficulty, her anger rising but unlike Lucy, she kept it under control.

\- " Okay, bitchy girl, very well. You can keep your Natsu for all I care. That is, if he ever comes back from Isvan. "

/-In the train heading to the Isvan region-/

Natsu was agonizing like always, Happy trying with great difficulty to help him while the rocking of the train tried to finish the dragon off. After he left the shop, he went straight to the guild so that Mirajane could officializes his mission, while making sure the reason behind his mission was a secret, the match maker part of the barmaid helping a lot (she found the idea of Natsu leaving to get back the key that Lucy had to unwillingly sacrifice when they faced Tartaros. But even that motivation was not enough to prevent Natsu from dying, getting slowly killed by his motion sickness, under the eyes of two newcomers, very surprised to see him here.

\- " Natsu ? Happy ? What the hell are you doing here ? "

\- " Gray ? Juvia ? " Exclaimed Happy, surprised seeing both mages standing in front of the compartment looking at them with big eyes.

\- " But what are you doing here ? " Asked Juvia one more time, Happy answering since Natsu was too busy groaning and trying to hold back his puking. As Happy explained the situation, Juvia and Gray seemed more and more tense.

\- " Hum, you know that it really feels like something bad will get out of this situation, right ? " says Gray, addressing Happy, Natsu still unable to answer.

\- " I told him that, but he refuse to listen to me. " Admitted the Exceed, feeling as worried as the others, but now, if things should turn for the worse, he will be able to help. Once they reached the station of Shiroame, both groups parted, each going in a completely different direction.

/-With Gray and Juvia-/

Both lovers were in the middle of the ruins of the ice mage home town, standing in front of a simple wooden cross on which was engraved the names of his parents, Silver and Mika, now deceased. Both mages were silent, Juvia kneeling to put some flowers on the grave, both praying until Juvia got up and raised her eyes towards the sky covered with grey clouds.

\- " It's going to snow soon. "

\- " Yeah. I think that it's time to go ho … Hey, what's with all this fog ? "

Indeed, the village ruin was suddenly covered by a thick fog which almost seemed to close on them. In only a few seconds, they couldn't even see their own feet anymore.

\- " Juvia ! Are you still there ? "

\- " Yes, but Gray where are you ? I don't … AAAAHHHH ! "

\- " Juvia ? JUVIA ?! "

The shout from Gray got lost in the mist which dissipated as fast as it had appeared, but when it had totally disappeared, Juvia was gone with the fog. Instead of her blue haired girlfriend, there was a stone plate on which was engraved a text which Gray hurried to read.

" If you want your girlfriend back, come to Kitakaze. "

\- " Kitakaze ? It is not … " Gray needed moment to understand but when he did, he left in a furious sprint. " Natsu, you absolute idiot ! "

/- Kitakaze -/

Natsu and Happy were outside of the city, in front of the river mentioned in Rachel's request and indeed, enormous blocks of ice blocked the way and prevent any boat from going out.

\- "They appeared overnight, and nobody managed to make them move ever since. Nothing works. It is the miracle that you came." Declared a fisherman whom Natsu had met in town.

\- "No need to thank me, I'm going do that with pleasure." Began Natsu before stopping. "Wait. What do you mean a miracle ? You made a request to our guild." Called back Natsu but much to his surprise, the fisherman shook his head negatively.

\- "We did nothing of this kind yet. Why ?"

\- "I'm the one who did it."

Up in front of them stood a man that came out of some kind of mist. Tall, short blonde hair, a well-trimmed beard, blue eyes which seemed to be made of ice. He wore a woolen pants with big winter shoes, chains around his waist by way of belt and a sleeve-less white open vest, showing that the cold didn't bothered him at all. There was something wild in this guy that didn't go with well with Natsu. But the dragon didn't have time to think more about it than it was pushed aside by Gray, who began scolding him.

\- "Natsu, you stupid ash brain. I knew that this request was a trap ! This guy is a Strizer !"

\- "Well, at least there's one who knows how to use his brain." Threw the Strizer by revealing some sort of huge jar made of ice inside of which was Juvia, unconscious but apparently in good shape. "I didn't expected Gray and Juvia to joins the party, but I'll do with."

\- "Wait what the hell is that ? What's going on ?" roared Natsu, not understanding.

 _ **ICE SHARDS !**_

A flock of ice shards fell on the mages who jumped away to avoid them. In front of them, the blonde Strizer had pieces of ices which floated in the palm of his hand, his look neutral.

\- "You are the slow type, it would seem ? You were tricked. My name is Ragnar Linderoth. The Strizer of cold. So, we're going to start or what ?"

 **Once again, the end is a little precipitated but I hope that you liked it nevertheless. I'll see you soon for the next chapter. See you !**

 **Next time: misty battle. The cold from another world. What the Strizers are fearing.**


	21. Chapter 21 : Alert : Hail and Hoarfrost

**Hi! The first snows of the season fall on my city as I get ready to start the writing of a fight centered around cold and ice. Coincidence ?**

 **.**

 **..**

…

 **Yes.**

 **Anyway, let us not linger. I hope you all had a nice Halloween ! Also, thank you for every of your return. It's always pleasant to see that you like this fic.**

 **Before starting, I would like to make a small reaction on the previous chapter, in particular on Lucy's attitude. I had returns of people which had found Lucy really OOC and I can only recognize that it is the case. I should have warned you of this OOC, it is an error I'm deeply sorry of. But I also wanted to show that Lucy, divided between her feelings for Natsu and her decision to put them aside, was not really herself at the time. But things will get better between them.**

 **And now, let's go !**

 **Ah! And I am not the owner of Fairy Tail, only Ragnar and the Strizers belongs to me.**

 **Chapter 21 : Alert : hail and hoarfrost.**

In the North, the cold is one of the biggest danger one can face. Without enough preparation or clothes, it is easy to die from the cold temperature, frozen up to your bones. Well, it is only true if you're a normal human being. Which was not the case of 3 of 4 people now facing each other on this ice-cold plain by the sea. Indeed, being the Fire Dragon Slayer, Natsu had an abnormally high body temperature which allowed him to walk half naked in a snowstorm without any problems. Gray, due to his training, had developed a form of immunity to the cold and Ragnar, being the Strizer controlling ice, among other things, had the same kind of resistance. Happy wasn't as lucky as them, because even if his fur was sufficient to keep him warm, it was not as developed when he was in his human form like now. There was also a 5th person present. Juvia, basically kidnapped by the Strizer, was still unconscious, ironically shielded from the cold by the big ice-made jar of some sort. By her side was a small golden key which shone through the ice. On the psychological plan, they were all ready to fight, except Natsu who seemed to have difficulty in analyzing the situation.

\- "How's that a trap ?" He wondered. "It is just a coincidence !"

\- "Think a little, moron !" Shouted Gray, Natsu's stubbornness starting to get in his nerves. "A mission like that was too good to be true. She sent to you right into a trap !"

\- "But why would she do that after helping me so much ? Stop saying dumb things, ice prick !"

\- "Stop arguing, both of you ! It's not the moment for that !" Happy had intervened to try to defuse the situation but neither of them listened to him and the Strizer took advantage of the situation.

 _ **FROST WOLVES BITES !**_

Several wolves made of translucent ice arose suddenly from nowhere and rushed at the mages and Exceed who, too busy with their little quarrel, didn't have the opportunity to dodge and were bitten by the frosty animals, the wounds they received freezing immediately, causing chilblains to appear on the wounds.

\- "Whether this is a trap or not, I think you have more urgent problem to settle." Reminded the Strizer by watching the mages getting up to look in his direction. He pointed at the jar where Juvia was still laying with the key, a vision which reminded the 2 mages that they indeed had things more important to do : saving Juvia, getting back the key and while they were at it, beating that guy. When the mages finally stood up, they looked each other and with a simple nod, they agreed on the same thing : this trap thing will wait. And they were going to make up for the time they lost with Ragnar.

 _ **ICE MAKE : LANCES !**_

Gray called upon his magic to throw spears made of ice to his opponent who did not move, grabbing the chains which he had around his waist and made them swirl like whips, the ice spears breaking against them, like they were reduced to dust in their contact. This way of fighting made Happy do a remark while he began flying above them.

\- "For a Strizer, you're not using your elemental power a lot." Noticed Happy before rushing towards Ragnar, still occupied with stopping Gray spears. But Ragnar had a quality which was going to cause them trouble.

He had no problem fighting on several fronts at the same time.

So, he stopped swirling one of his chains, accelerating the movement with the other one to compensate, then pointed a finger at the Exceed.

 _ **FREEZE RAY !**_

A light blue ray looking like a pressured water gun touched one of Happy's wings which rendered him unable to fly, thus falling down straight to the ground. From his part, Ragnar struck the ground between Gray's feet with his unused chain, breaking the ice and making the mage lose his footing who then had to stop his attack, while sending his other chain wrap up around the neck of Happy that he then spun like an athlete doing a hammer throw before throwing him at Gray, sending both fairies to the ground. On his side, Natsu had prepared his own offensive.

\- " If you control ice, then I'll just have to melt it. "

 _ **FIRE DRAGON'S ROAR !**_

 _ **ICEBERG BARRIER !**_

The river of flames collided with a thick wall of ice which had just raised itself on the fire way. A cloud of vapor of an impressive size rose because of the ice which had gone from solid state to gaseous in an instant, testifying of the heat of flames, but without destroying the wall which remained globally intact.

\- " And here I believed that with all this past fight against Gray you would have learnt that flames do not always easily win against ice, moreover when it's a magic made ice. " Said Ragnar, his look still devoid of emotions. " Furthermore, I would be a really mediocre Strizer of the cold if I couldn't handle a little heat and flames. "

 _ **ICE FANGS RUSH !**_

Ragnar then struck the wall of ice which broke in a thick cloud of ice shards which were thrown towards the dragon, his body heat melting the thin pieces of ice, but creating by the same a cloud of vapor which Ragnar known how to use.

 _ **FROSTBITE CHAIN STRAIGTH !**_

Ragnar had appears from inside the vapor, striking Natsu in the face with a right jab, fist covered with chains which seemed to have become of an azure color and seemingly smoking, the contact of the chains freezing his skin at the time, the chilblain eating away the skin of the pinkette which was throw backward, landing near the river. Ragnar, spinning his chains in his hands like a rotor, approached Natsu and threw one of them towards the dragon. Who managed to intercept the attack with one bare hand, smiling with a certain sadism before plunging his other unused hand, red hot, into the water of the river. The shock due to the sudden difference of temperature provoked an explosion of vapor which surrounded the Strizer and before he's got the time to do anything at all, Happy, back in his normal form, appeared and caught one of his chains, using his speed to wrap him up to block his arms before he could do anything and took off with him, offering him a roller coaster ride for free before diving towards the ground where Gray and Natsu were waiting for them, side by side ready to receive the Strizer. Happy, which had fallen straight ahead towards the ground, turned suddenly when he got close to the ground heading toward his friends, the momentum sending the Strizer crashing into the ground before being dragged in the ice, heading toward the mages.

 _ **FIRE DRAGON'S IRON FIST !**_

 _ **ICE MAKE : GAUNTLET !**_

Happy passed between both of his friends as they called on to their respective magics, Natsu lighting his fist on fire whereas Gray covered his own with a huge glove made of ice, looking like a miniature version of Vambrace. When the Strizer reached their level, they attacked at the same time, striking Ragnar in the face which made him do an impressive series of backflip before crashing down heavily on the ground, the chains beginning to loosen while he got up, his face all bloodied, but without expressing the slightest emotion. Which almost annoyed the mages.

\- " You could at least pretend that this is pissing you off. " Spat Gray, obtaining no answer from Ragnar who stretched his arms, a fog wrapping his body.

 _ **FOG ZONES : INFINITY ICE RINK !**_

Clapping his hands, the fog threw itself on the mages and Exceed who found themselves within one second surrounded with a mist so thick that they couldn't even see where they were anymore. In addition to that, the ground had become much more slippery, which made their footings really unstable.

\- " What is that now ? " Asked Gray, not reassured at the idea of, basically, fighting without sight.

\- " You can ask the question to Natsu. " Answered Ragnar, but his voice had echoed as if it came from everywhere around him. "He has already got through something like that if I remember well. "

Natsu needed a moment to think, the answer blocked for a moment in his head before he finally remember. A memory about a forest and a certain plant controlling cook.

\- " The cook. The first Strizer whom we faced, he had a similar trap, but it was a forest. "

\- " Exactly. But I doesn't use it like he did. Why wait outside when you can be a part of the fun ? " Answered Ragnar.

\- " We just have been plunged into a mist, it's not as if it was some poison. " Happy said, trying to feel reassured, but he was quickly put back in his place by a stalactite which struck him in the back, and when he turned around to see what it was, slashing at the mist but touching nothing. " What ? But where did it came from ? "

\- " Be wary of the devil. He is hidden in the mist. " The Strizer philosophized before unleashing his element.

Soon, all the prisoners of the mist were attacked by ice shards, most of them shaped likes spikes, which seemed to appear out of nowhere, and more than that, the ground regularly bristled with spikes to add a dose of suffering to this foggy nightmare. They tried nevertheless to strike every time they were attacked, but they never touched anything, or when they did, they attacked each other. While they were being plundered with ice cubes, Natsu remembered of the whispering forest and the plants which had attacked them and then realized a thing. The ice fragments, like the plants, didn't came out from nowhere.

\- " Guys, I think that this ice is coming from the mist itself. " Natsu's theory was welcomed by applauses which resounded in the fog.

\- " Well done. I am amazed that YOU understood that. " It was Ragnar, whose exact position was still unknown. " The fog is in fact made of water droplets and ice crystals suspended in the air. If I freeze them, I can then use it to attack. Which means you are literally prisoner of my power. "

The Strizer was in the fog, seeing clearly his opponents through the mist thanks to the heat their body were emitting. He was taking his time to calculate his next move when he noticed that a heat signature was missing.

 _ **NEKO CLAW SLASHER !**_

In an instant, he understood where the absentee was but he was too late. Happy had appears behind him, slashing him in his back with his sharp magic enhanced claws.

\- " You talked about joining the party. That necessarily meant that you were somewhere inside the fog. And I'm not the one to usually stroke my own ego, but I have a rather sharp sense of smell and not only for fishes. "

The feline and the Strizer then start fighting, Happy defending himself rather well, also trying to do as much noise as possible, but regrettably his opponent had the advantage of fighting in a place in knew better than him, what allowed him to quickly get the upper hand on the anthropomorphic cat. But fortunately for the latter, the reinforcements didn't took long to arrive.

 _ **FIRE DRAGON'S CLAW !**_

Once again taken by surprise, Ragnar received a flaming drop kick in the stomach from Natsu, the flames burning his skin but he managed to stay on-the-spot, plunging his feet in the ice on which they evolved since a few minutes ago. Which would have been a good idea if there had been no new intervention after what.

 _ **ICE BLADE : SEVEN SLICE DANCE !**_

Gray appeared too, in this technique typical stance, blades ready to be used on his forearm, swirling on himself to strike the Strizer 7 times with his blades, the strength of the assault taking the Strizer out of the ground, sending him crash on the ground a little farther. When he looked up towards the mages, the latter were delighted to see he was finally reacting, his eyes reflecting a certain annoyance.

\- " How were you able to find me ? " He wondered, at the same time intrigued and annoyed. " For Happy to spot me, I can understand, but not you. "

\- " Why did you think Happy did so much noises ? " The answer came out of Gray, which smiled derisively, which did not pleased the blond that much.

\- " You have to learn not to get on your high horses every time you put one of us on our knees. That will eventually came back at you. "

 _ **SNOW SWEEPING BURST !**_

Ragnar, still on his knees, spun on himself, arms stretched out towards the outside which threw an enormous quantity of snow which repelled the mages and whereas they struggled to get out of the thick layer of snow under which they were now buried, Ragnar covered himself one more time with mist, but this one felt different.

 _ **FOG ZONES : SNOWY HAILSTORM HELL !**_

The fog, which was already very thick, became even more thick, which gave the mages the impression that they were blind, but it was not the biggest problem. A powerful icy wind got up, carrying with him thick snowflakes and hailstones which were as big as golf balls. The whole thing began swirling like a cyclone and the fairies found themselves being bombarded from everywhere, rendering them unable to do anything. Especially that besides the storm, Ragnar continued to bombard them with shards of ice coming from the mist and the cherry on the cake, the wind blurred the smells which makes the only means they had to spot him unusable.

\- " RAH ! If you're still in this damned fog, then I am going to force you to show yourself ! " Roared Natsu, his anger, for once under control, amplifying his heat while he filled his lungs with air.

 _ **FIRE DRAGON'S SWEEPING ROAR !**_

Natsu then blow his usual jet of flames, but this time it was used differently, Natsu spinning on himself, sweeping the mist covered zone, Gray and Happy being forced to lay on the ground to dodge the attack, but Ragnar did the same, waiting simply for the dragon to stop his offensive, which came sooner than he thought. Natsu was trying to get his breath back when he felt his body becoming numb suddenly. Looking down, he saw that ice began to climb up his legs, immobilizing him and when he tried to melt this ice, the water refroze almost immediately every time he melted it, making it even more solid every time. In front of him, he saw the mist gathering in a unique point, forming a wide picket of ice, aimed straight at him. He struggled even more, without knowing that Happy and Gray were in the same situation. And while everything seemed desperate, an event which nobody would have been able to plan happen.

 _ **WATER TSUNAMI !**_

Ragnar, which got ready to carry the deathblow to the mages, turned his head to the origin of the shout, finding himself, as he expected it, facing more mist. What he wasn't ready for on the other hand was for the mist to suddenly be repelled by a big wave which swept everything on its wake, included himself. In a matter of a few seconds only, the prison of mist had disappeared and the 2 mages, 1 Exceed and 1 Strizer were laid out on the ground, wet but alive. What took them by surprise, was that this water was hot. When they raised their head, they felt a mixture of incomprehension and relief, the last one not concerning Ragnar. Up next to the urn in which she was supposed to be, was Juvia, apparently not very happy, pointing at the bearded Strizer with a furious gaze.

\- " IT IS YOU WHO HURT MY GRAY ?! "

\- " Yeah. And why does it matter ? " Answered Ragnar, seemingly not giving a fuck.

 _ **SIERRA JIGSAW !**_

Juvia, beside herself, changed in water bouillonnante and threw itself on Strizer, its aqueous body swirling as a drill, but Ragnar was not more impressed and prepared a defense.

 _ **ICEBERG BARRIER !**_

The same wall of ice which had held Natsu later appeared between the Strizer and the water mage, which didn't stop at all. But Ragnar was confident: if a fire dragon had not been able to drill this wall, a drill made of water won't succeed.

Except that she did.

\- "Ah !"

A very simple reaction on behalf of a man who just saw his wall, which he thought unbreakable, be pierced like a wall made of wool by a spray of water. Spray of water which didn't stop there and collided with him quite hard. He could feel the whirlwind beginning to drill the skin of his rib cage, but even without that, the boiling water which burned his skin which had become bright red, which was worse than the rest, tearing away a growl of pain while he was thrown in the river, Juvia taking advantage of it to rush at Gray.

\- "Gray ! Are you alright ? Juvia is sorry for the tsunami."

\- "It's nothing. You did well. But what did you do to destroy that mist so easily ?" He asked, obtaining an answer from Happy who had just approached them.

\- "If this technique is the same as the forest Strizer, then that had to be a kind of dimensional pocket, a prison which has a definite size but which extends in the inside to keep his victims prisoners." Proposed Happy, trying to find an explanation. "From the outside, she had to have a fixed size and an attack from Juvia broke her."

\- "It is cool and all that, but that does not explain how you were able to go out of your prison." This time, it was Natsu who had asked a completely justifiable question this time. But Juvia didn't have much more information than them.

\- "Juvia was woken by a strong heat. Juvia understood what was happening and she intervened. But she was laid down next to that."

By saying it, she hold the golden key which was by her side in the jar. Natsu opened wide eyes and tried to seize it but regrettably, he didn't have time. A chain had come in the middle of the group, winding around the key and tearing it away from Juvia's hand. At the other end of the chain, they found Ragnar, who just came out of the water, key in hand.

\- "Sorry, but I need this key to keep you motivate to fight." Began the Strizer. "I admit that I did not expect for Natsu to free Juvia and that she joins the party, but I'll do with it."

\- "How's that, I freed her ?" Repeated Natsu, surprised by the Strizer assertion. "And how did I do that ?"

\- " When you swept the mist with your flames. " Answered Ragnar before explaining more. " Our dimensional pockets depend on a physical element. For Vincenzo's whispering forest, he needs to have plants. For my mist, those are droplets of water or ice crystals. Your breath evaporated it enough to slightly pierce the pocket and your breath reached the prison, melting it and waking Juvia thanks to the heat. "

\- " Ah Okay. " Answered Natsu before turning to Gray, a slightly derisive smile on his lips. " So this means that I saved your girlfriend, you are then indebted to me. So you'll help me to get this key back. "

\- " Yeah, yeah, right. If I help you to get the key, that will be for Lucy and not for you. " Answered Gray by turning to Juvia, whose face was showing a certain concern. "What is it, Juvia ? Is there a problem ?"

\- " It's this key. I have a funny presentiment about it. "

\- " What you … "

Gray didn't have time to finish his question that the air became suddenly much more colder. Turning to the source, which was the Strizer, the mages saw that he was surrounded with a halo of white and sky blue light, his chains rolled up around his forearms and which had also become sky blue, smoking of hoarfrost.

 _ **COLD EMPEROR : ABSOLUTE ZERO !**_

The witches looked at him suspiciously. It was so much cold that same Gray and Natsu shivered.

 _ **SIERRA SLICER !**_

Still in her boiling water shape, Juvia threw a blade of water at the Strizer but when it reached him, he raised a hand towards the blade which froze immediately when it came in contact with it. But he didn't stop there. He stretched a hand towards Juvia and threw a wave of cold air which Juvia didn't completely dodge, her foot being touched and frozen immediately, making her cry in pain. She had been frozen on at least one centimeter of skin.

\- " The absolute zero. The coldest temperature that exists. A temperature so low even atoms stop moving. I could only advise you to pay attention if you don't want to end up transforming into shaved ice. "

Although aware of the danger, the mages had no other choices that to fight nevertheless, giving up not being part of their vocabulary.

 _ **ICE MAKE : COLD EXCALIBUR !**_

Calling upon a large sword made of ice, Gray tried to strike the Strizer but he was so cold that the sword shattered in an instant when it touched the Strizer, the latter having basically froze Gray's ice. But before Ragnar could reach and touch Gray, another attack diverted his attention.

 _ **DRAGON SLAYER'S SECRET ART : CRIMSON LOTUS : EXPLODING FLAME BLADE !**_

A deluge of scarlet flames ran down on the Strizer which was wrapped with fire, fire that burned for a few seconds but as quickly that they had appeared, the flames were frozen, taking the dragon by surprise, but it offered another opportunity to attack to Gray who reused Cold Excalibur. However this time, Ragnar caught the blade in his hands and needed a few seconds to freeze the sword. By seeing this, Gray realized something then grabbed Natsu, dragging him away from the Strizer, joining Happy and Juvia.

\- " What the hell are you doing, ice queen ? We have to fight that guy ! "

\- " Listen to me at least, ash breath. I have a plan. "

Gray explained his plan to the others, who shook their head to show their approval, even Natsu who understood the interest of this plan.

\- " So, is that okay with you, flame brain ? "

\- " I'll concede, it's not a bad plan, the exhibitionist. Just this time, I'll follow you. "

After that, they got ready and got into position. Ragnar was watching them doing, waiting for the first attack, which was not the one he thought would be the first to come.

 _ **SIERRA CYCLONE !**_

Juvia called upon an huge whirlwind of boiling water which went to strike the Strizer who seemed almost disappointed by the choice of the mages. He raised a hand, ready to stop the attack, who began freezing, even if the was so hot that it was resisting a lot, when another offensive diverted his attention.

 _ **FIRE DRAGON KING'S ROAR !**_

Natsu, drawing from the power of the fire dragon king that he had in him, blew an enormous burst of flame on the Strizer, on the opposite side of the water, forcing Ragnar to counter an attack with each hand, reducing its efficiency. But the worst for him was that he was stuck between scorching water on one side and super-hot flames on the other, which was what the mages wanted to do. Everything worked according to Gray's plan.

\- " It's working ! Like you said it would. " Noticed Happy, Gray smiling at that.

\- " I noticed that he had had more difficulty freezing my sword after Natsu's attack. Because of that, I said to myself that if we increased his temperature, his freezing ability would be less effective. And I was right. Furthermore, he can't divert his attention away from Natsu and Juvia because if he do, he'll be struck by their attack. Which means that we have an opening at last. It's your turn Happy. Go get him !"

Indeed, he could see that Ragnar had more and more difficulty to hold out, sweat dripping on his forehead, clear sign that it was the moment to send the next assault. Happy took a run-up, rushing at the Strizer, claws shining with magic.

 _ **NEKO CROSS SLASHER !**_

Unable to defend himself, Ragnar was struck quite hard by the Exceed's claws, wide cross shaped gashes appearing on his torso and being thrown backward, his arms slightly burned by the flames and boiling water he couldn't hold back, landing on the ground. But not for a long time.

 _ **SIERRA SWIRLING LOCK !**_

Ragnar had no time to understand what was happening that he was locked in a wide sphere of boiling water, so hot as he had difficulty in freezing anything, added to the fact that the bubbles was swirling, disorientating him. But it did not prevent him from seeing what was preparing for him outside. Namely Gray and Natsu taking both a deep breath, filling their lungs with air and magic.

 _ **COLD FIRE DEVIL DRAGON'S RAGING ROAR !**_

Both mages merged their attacks, creating a single projection of flames and ice which crossed the ice-cold battleground and which engulfed the Strizer, sending him crashing into the huge ice blocks hampering the mouth of the river, the explosion shockwave creating waves which submerged the shores, small pebbles of ice raining on the surrounding, including the mages who weren't bothered at all by that strange rain. They thought that it was done and that they could go back, but Ragnar reappeared, covered with bruises and with wounds. He was not at his best, but was still ready to fight.

\- " It was well thought and done, I admit it. But I have more than one trick up my sleeves. You'll need much more than that if you want to … "

*CRASH* The characteristic noise of a body crashing on the ground interrupted the Strizer and drew the attention of everyone towards a cloud of snow and ice lifted by this impact that came out of nowhere. And what got out of it paralyzed the faeries.

3 creatures with coal colored bodies had just appeared. They had a relatively human like body, relatively small with 2 arms and 2 legs, but the hands were endowed with only 3 fingers, just like their feet, with light gray nails. Their lengthened head that looked like xenomorphs heads, were endowed with 3 yellow eyes arranged in a triangle which seemed to scan their surroundings. The mages didn't know what to think of the newly arrived creature that they could only identify as monsters.

\- " No, it's not true. Why now ?"

The mages had been so surprised by the arrival of those monsters that they had almost forgotten the Strizer, and when they looked at him, they were taken by surprise one more time. Ragnar had his eyes gazing at the three monsters, which he seemed to know and was apparently not happy to see them here.

\- " What the hell are those things ? " Asked Natsu, addressing Ragnar who turned his head as if he just remembered that he was not here alone before turning his attention back on monsters.

\- " They are scouts. And the fact that they are here is not good. "

At this precise moment, the 3 scouts turned their head to the Strizer, their eyes turning red when they saw him and thrown themselves at him, their eyes shooting lasers at Ragnar who, chains in hands, rushed at them, intercepting the shootings with his chains.

 _ **FROST CHAINS !**_

When he reached them, his chains covered with hoarfrost, the creatures stopped shootings, their nails growing to long claws. The mages observed Ragnar facing the 3 creatures which, after a few minutes, had all been killed. The first one had his head totally frozen which had burst like glass, the second one pierced by one of the chains whose extremity had been covered with an ice spike and the third one had been cut in 2 at the waist, which had been frozen before being broken in two, enclosed by one of the chains in a mortal embrace. After that, the Strizer remained a moment looking at the 3 corpses before sighing, a hand on his wounds, turning to the mages.

\- " Well, change of plan. It was a pleasure meeting and fighting you all, but I'll have to go back now. "

\- " Wait a second. What EXACTLY were those things ? " Asked Gray, not satisfied only knowing that those were scouts.

\- " I already said it. Scouts. And I suppose that you are intelligent enough to know to what kind of role a scout have. " Sighed Ragnar. " I'm going to have to report what I have just seen. As a result, I'm not going to hold you here any longer. "

He took the golden key out of his pocket and threw it towards the mages, Natsu catching it while it was coming at him. But when he finally had it between his hands, he felt that there was a problem. This key had something strange. Doubt overtaking his mind, he made his hands super-hot and in a matter of seconds, the key began melting. Natsu looked at it with big eyes, thinking about everything and ending up admitting that Gray might have been right.

\- " It was all a trap ? "

\- " You see. What did I told you ? " Answered Gray.

\- " The mention alone of the golden key was enough to make you come, but I wanted to get a replica just in case you would have been accompanied by less naïve people. " Explained Ragnar with a small smile, Natsu too shocked to notice the insult on his naivety.

\- " So I was also right. Rachel is one of you." Asserted Gray, confidently.

\- "It's up to you to figure that out. She could only be an accomplice." Simply answered the blond. "Anyway, I have to leave you. So this is goodbye. And who knows. The next time we shall see each other, we could be on the same side."

And after this last rather mysterious sentence, he disappeared in a screen of mist, leaving the mages behind them. The latter exchanged an intrigued look. They will have to clear up things. But a thing was sure : the Strizers were hiding something and that could change everything.

 **And 21 ! I hope that you liked that chapter. So we discovered something new about the Strizers. What are those monsters ? What do they want ? Are they going to change the way the Strizers are perceived by the mages ? You'll have to read the suite of the story to discover it.**

 **See you !**

 **Next time : Reconciliation. Multiple disappearances. A threat made of glass and gemstones.**


	22. Chap 22 : Reconciliation & disappearance

**Hello! You are all well, I hope ? 22nd chapter today, a chapter which you will like just as the others I hope. I have nothings important to be said, maybe apart thanking you for the support that you bring me.**

 **I also have to warn you that I might be late on the next chapter, I'll be away next Saturday and Sunday morning and if I don't write the French version fast enough, I might not be able to translate it in time. I normally publish the chapter on Sunday, but for the next one, it might be the following Monday. Also, according to the delay I might have, I could take a small break for about one week so I can go back on my usual rhythm. Sorry for the inconvenience that might come.**

 **I also remind you just in case. I have no rights on Fairy Tail, everything belongs to Hiro Mashima, with the exception of the Strizers of course which are my personal creations.**

 **Well, enough gossips, let's go !**

 **Chapter 22: Reconciliation and disappearance, a threat of glass and gemstones.**

/-Shiroame-/

After a bitter fight against Ragnar, the Strizer of the cold, Juvia, Gray, Natsu and Happy had all returned to the train station of the city of Shiroame, the same one where they got off the train when they arrived in the region. They were sitting on a bench, waiting for their train. Natsu was not liking that, as usual, but he had no choice, especially since Happy's wing were not totally healed off his frozen wings : he had been able, thanks to the adrenalin of the fight, to exceed the pain, but he was now unfit to fly. On another note, the mages and Exceed were far from being appeased by what they had learnt during their short stay in the North. First thing, they had discovered the very strange existence of creatures which the Strizers seemed to know and whose presence augured nothing good. Another point which had cast a chill was the fact that Rachel, Natsu's advisor and self-proclaimed fashion queen of Magnolia, who was getting on so well with everybody at the guild, had Natsu straight into a trap, a fact that the latter couldn't deny any more. But he still remained optimistic, but maybe a little too much.

\- " I say that she still can be innocent. " Persisted Natsu which tore away an irritated growl from Gray.

\- " Are you going to stop defending her !? " Shouted the man of ice, who was feeling like he was about to jump at his friend throat.

\- " I'm not defending her." Replied Natsu. " Listen, she is helpful, she likes helping people out. There might be a possibility that somebody used that against her. Someone who knew that, seeing the reward, she'll give me the job. "

\- " Yes, there's a chance that it could have been the case. " Admitted Juvia, getting a grateful look from Natsu and a disappointed one from Gray before continuing. " But the probability is extremely low. Do not focus on this small hope. "

\- " Yes, I know. But I have the right to believe it at least a little, no ? "

Juvia agreed whereas Gray sighed, admitting defeat, hoping that Natsu was ready to be disappointed. When the train arrived in the station, they all rose and went to get aboard one of the cars, Natsu suddenly feeling nauseous but forced himself to stay awake. They still had to talk about those black monsters that they had seen.

\- " And these things, these monsters or I don't know what, from where are they coming from in your opinion ? " Asked Happy, caressing absently his wings, still numb after having spent so much time frozen.

\- " I have never seen such things before. And if that Strizers knows them, I think that they have to be from the same world. " Supposed Gray, Juvia agreeing by his side whereas Natsu, swallowing the bile which had just reached his throat, allowing himself a small comment.

\- " In any case, they don't seems to be buddies with what Ragnar did to those three. " Growled out the dragon before turning to the window, his skin greener than never.

\- " The problem is that in our case, Juvia has the impression that none of the two side have any good intention to us. "

The mages stayed silent after this last remark because if Juvia was right, they were going to find themselves taken between two threats. They had to return as quickly as possible to the guild to inform the others of what they had discovered because it will be crucial for what the future will be in this war.

/-Magnolia-/

Arrived at the train station, Natsu was the first one to throw himself, almost literally, outside of the train. He did a monstrous effort to hold on and stay conscious, but he had not spent a great moment nevertheless. The others were also relieved that it was finished. When you spend several hours risking to be vomited on by a motion sick Dragon Slayer, you too are wishing for the ride to end quickly. By heading out of the station, while they were heading to the guild, they were interrupted by a strong wave of magic coming from the forest which a side of the city, not far away from the station. What surprised them the most was because this magic was Lucy's one, and judging by the intensity, she was in full effort.

\- " What is she doing ? You think that she is in danger ? " Wondered Happy, turning to the others.

\- " I don't think so. If that would be the case, we would also feel the magic of others which who have come to help her. " Answered Gray. " But I admit I'm curious. I wonder what she is doing."

\- " I am going to go see her. " Proposed Natsu, taking a step in the direction of the forest where Lucy's magic was coming from. " Go to the guild to tell the others what we discovered. We will joined you there later, but I probably won't be there at the same time as Lucy. I'll need to visit Rachel before that. "

Hearing Rachel's name and what Natsu was planning to do, the face of the others wrinkled.

\- " Well, be careful if you really go to her store alone. Who knew what could happen ? " Advised Juvia. " There is a strong chance that she might be working with them. "

\- " I know. I understand and I'll be careful. "

\- " Wait, I am going to come with you. " Proposed Happy before being stopped by Natsu.

\- " No, I'll be fine. Go get your wing healed by Wendy, it's for the better. "

\- " It's really not your place to talk about that, ash brain. " Said Gray, pointing at the profound chilblains which Natsu had on his arms and sides.

\- " I said I'm okay. Now go, I'll see you later. "

On these last words, Natsu went away from the group who, after a few seconds of silence, resumed their road heading to the guild. Natsu, on his side, was getting closer and closer to Lucy. He could feel her magic growing and decreasing in regular interval, like it was breathing. When he finally found her, he was surprised by the show which was in front of him.

In front of him was Lucy, in a similar dress as the last time he saw her, which was a pair of shorts and a sport bra, the whole thing being skin-tight, which made our salamander redden whereas the stellar spirit mage got her breath back. She had her new key in her hand and was standing in the middle of a clearing which had seen better days. The earth had been overturned in several places, some trees seemed to even be tilted and branches strewed the ground here and there. Shaking his head to get his focus back, Natsu advanced silently on Lucy who, her back turned to him, had still not realized that she was not alone any more.

\- " I don't know what those trees did to you, but you beat them up good."

Lucy jumped out her skin, shouting, surprised by this well-known voice which had suddenly broken the silence into which she had been plunged for several minutes. Turning around suddenly, she was faced with Natsu, who blushes again by seeing the face. Her hazel eyes wide open by the surprise, her slightly gleaming skin due to the sweat and her half-opened lips, panting, Natsu was totally charmed. But he tried hard to let nothing show when Lucy regained her ability to talk.

\- " Natsu ? What are you doing here ?" She asked whereas her eyes settled on the wounds of her friend, which were still covered with a little layer of ice frost, his skin having begun to take a bluish tint. " And what is that ? What happened to you ? "

\- " I felt your magic and that intrigued me. " Explained Natsu before turning his head to his wounds. " And it's nothing, don't worry about that. "

\- " Don't say stupid things like that ! Let me see that. "

Lucy forced Natsu to sit down on a stump to inspect these wounds closer, Natsu almost not reacting, even if her sudden proximity made him blush. By looking at the wounds, she asked herself several questions, one of them being a question she needed to answer quickly, already having an idea of the answer.

\- " Let me guess. You did that to yourself that by going on that mission your girlfriend entrusted to you ? " Lucy tried to be relaxed, but she had said this sentence with the kindness of a prison door. But Natsu just smiled slightly before answering.

\- " First, we aren't together. She tried to seduce me, it's true, but she doesn't interests me. And two, yes, it was during this mission, and it was because of a Strizer. "

Hearing that word made Lucy tightened her hands on Natsu wounded arm, making the Salamander cringe in pain.

\- " Ah, I'm sorry ! But, a Strizer ? Then this mission was a trap ? Natsu, you aren't stupid to the point of being played so easily, right ? "

\- " It is what Happy, Juvia and the other exhibitionist told me, but I would have been more suspicious if I was not that interested in the reward. " He took the poster out of his pocket and hand it to the blonde who looked directly at the reward and when she saw what it was about, she raised towards Natsu her eyes which were almost wet.

\- " You did that one for me ? " Her voice was slightly quivering, shaken by the emotion.

\- " Yeah, but the swindle didn't stop there. " He took something else out of his pocket, a golden object which looked like a melted key that Lucy grabbed, understanding the swindle. " They made everything to attract me there. "

\- " But then Rachel has to be a part of that ! She certainly works with them. "

\- "Save your breath, Luce. You are going to repeat me what the others have already told me. " Natsu had cut Lucy, explaining her the situation. " Seeing the efforts that she did to help me, I want to believe that she can have nothing to do with that, you understand ? "

Lucy would tend to believe that he was just trying to defend her, but by seeing his eyes, darkened by the disappointment, she understood that he was aware that there was of strong chance that Rachel can be an enemy. Which made her smile before teasing the dragon.

\- " But why do wanted to get Aquarius key back for me so much ? You didn't trust my capacities to find her myself ? " Natsu was afraid for a moment that the situation was going to became dangerous but by seeing the teasing smile on Lucy's face, he understood that ha had nothing to be afraid of.

\- " No, it is not that. I just thought that with this key, you would have been able to, I don't know, to both restart on good bases, seen that lately, we weren't as close as before. "

The confession of Natsu made Lucy smile softly who then did something that Natsu wouldn't have dared to hope to receive so fast. She embraced the dragon, the blonde head put against his torso. The sudden closeness had made the Dragon Slayer face red scarlet but he recovered by returning the hug to her. After a few seconds, Lucy got away from the fire mage, her cheeks covered by a small blush.

\- " I agree. So, friend and partner ? "

\- " Y-yeah, friend and partner. " Lucy was too happy that things were getting better with Natsu to notice that the latter seemed slightly disappointed by these words. He wouldn't have been against being a little more than friend, but he was not going to force it on her if she didn't want it. After this moment, Lucy remembered herself that Natsu had mentioned Gray and Juvia.

\- "Wait, now that I think of it, Gray and Juvia were with you and Happy ? How come ?" asked the blonde, her question completely justified and Natsu answering it.

\- "It was totally a random thing in fact. The mission took place not far from the village where Gray parents are buried and they had gone to see them. We were in the same train and Ragnar, the Strizer of the cold which we faced over there, had kidnapped Juvia to force Gray to join us." By saying it, he remembered himself that there was something urgent to do. "Ah, I forgot. I need you to go to the guild. Gray, Juvia and Happy are there to announce something we discovered when we were fighting the Strizer."

\- "And you, what do you plan to do ?" Asked Lucy, slightly frowning.

\- "I needs to visit Rachel to clear up things." Declared the pink on a tone he tried to make firm. " So go to the guild and I shall join you lat… Ouch !"

\- "You will go nowhere, big guy !" Retorted Lucy, pulling Natsu by his ear. "I remind to you that there's a chance that she is working for them and you are not in any shape to fight again. So you are going to get healed before doing anything rash. Understood ?"

\- "OK, OK, I understood ! Stop pulling !" Listening to the dragon, Lucy finally freed his appendage which Natsu quickly tried to appease, still feeling the pressure exercised by Lucy's fingers. "Seriously, you didn't had to pull so hard." He said before turning to her with a smile. " You really are weird."

Lucy looked at Natsu, whose eyes shone roguishly, a look which Lucy returned to him by realizing that he didn't called her weird for quite a long time. She was not yet to the point where she wanted to be more than friends, as she would have wished it before those Strizers problem, but getting her friend and partner back was more than enough for now.

/- At the Guild -/

The atmosphere had suddenly become gloomy in the hall of the guild while Gray, Happy, Juvia and Natsu told everyone what happened at them. When the fairies had seen Gray, Juvia and Happy coming back together, covered with wounds and chilblains, they didn't reacts more than that : seeing mages coming back home in such a shape had become a rather common thing lately. But they had become suddenly anxious when the mage of ice had announced they had an important thing and that everybody had to listen to them. While everyone began to gather around them, the 3 wounded persons being inspected by Wendy, Charla and Porlyusica, whom Makarof had called as additional help to look after the future wounded, with the female Exceed being particularly attentive to the wounds on Happy. When Natsu finally arrived with Lucy, surprising the three mages he told he would go to Rachel's first, the fire dragon head towards Wendy to be looked after while Gray had begun its explanation with a sentence that cast a chill.

\- " We are going to make it short seen that that first part is not that different from every other one." Began Gray, holding Juvia's hand. " We faced the Strizer of the cold and at the end fight, while we were going to launch a last attack, 3 monsters appeared. "

\- " How's that, monsters ? " Asked Makarof, as if he thought he didn't heard correctly what Gray had said. But they didn't misheard anything.

\- " Yeah, monsters. " Continued Natsu, still being looked over by Wendy, Lucy sitting next to him, the two girl looking at him with big eyes, sign of their bewilderment. " They were black with 3 yellow eyes and lengthened heads. Ragnar, the Strizer, knew them apparently. "

\- " He even said that they were scouts. " Added Happy, which really frightened the others. Makarof in particular seemed worried.

\- " Scouts ? It's really not good. If there are scouts, then it means that there are many others who will follow them. " Announced Makarof, his face suddenly tensed.

\- " You think that an army of those guys could arrive ? " Asked Lisanna, without asking the question to one person in particular, but to everyone.

\- " It's generally what we use scouts for : to prepare the ground for the arrival of the big main part of their troops. " Answered Laxus, arms crossed, his intense eye showing a deep concentration. " You think that the Strizer knew that they were going to come ? These monsters, I mean. "

\- " Certainly. Ragnar suddenly wanted to leave when he beat them. " Remembered Juvia before Gildarts, who had finally got all his powers back, adds his own memory.

\- " And I remember what the kid of the sky said when we beat the guy of the earth. He said that they had no interest in rendering us unable to fight for good. It was without a doubt so that we can defend ourselves from these creatures. "

\- " That thus means that it's going to become a 3 sided war. " Had deducted Jellal, but he still thought. " And we have still no information about what the Strizers needs us for. "

\- "I agree." Makarof agreed before getting up to address the crowd. "We know nothing of their real intentions, but the Strizers remains dangerous and we have to stay on our guard. And also keep your eyes opened, we cannot let those monsters have time to prepare the arrival of their friends. Anyway, be careful and ready for anything at the moment, nobody knows when one of the two camps will act, but I feel that we are getting close to the end of all this."

The mages stayed a moment without moving, digesting what they had just learnt, before resuming little by little the thread of their activities, the anxiety and the apprehension of what could arrive afterward still present nevertheless. The wounded mages got questioned a little more by the others who, among other things, learned about the fake request given to Natsu by Rachel. Needless to say, they all became very suspicious of the fashion queen. And talking about her, Natsu, accompanied by Lucy, was heading for the "Diamonds Nest", Rachel's shop, because it was time to clear up things with her. But when they arrived on the place, the shop was closed, no trace of fashion queen and on the door of the shop, a simple message.

"Temporarily closed for health reasons."

\- "Health reason, yeah right." Seethed Lucy between grinded teeth. "She disappeared as if by chance while we want to pull question her about that trap and she wants to made us believe that she is just sick ?"

\- "I admit that it's really strange." Admitted Natsu, looking at the shop of an anxious air. "You know, Lucy, I like being wrong not very much. But now, I believe that you were right. She is hiding something."

/- The next day -/

Even if the threat of the Strizers and those strange monsters was still here, it did not prevent the mages from living their day like every others day like Erza and Jellal who was passing some time together in the streets of Magnolia. Well, it was the original plan. Indeed, Jellal was waiting outside of the cake store of the city, because Erza couldn't help herself and got inside the shop to satisfies her strawberry hunger. Jellal smiled absently, amused by this almost childish facet of the red head had as soon as she heard about or saw strawberries. In the shop, Erza was placing orders with the pastry cook who knew Erza very well, being one of his best customers, and he knew that he was going to have a really lot of work to cooks to satisfy this particularly demanding customer. However, while Erza was thinking if she had to put or not put a supplement of whipped cream on her dear cake, a white and blinding light coming from behind her drew her attention, but when she turned her head, the light had disappeared. But it was not the only one. Indeed, she didn't saw Jellal who was not the kind of guy to leave like that without warning or without a good reason. Ending her order in a hurry, she got out of the store, noticing that indeed, Jellal had disappeared.

\- "JELLAL ! WHERE ARE YOU ?"

Only the silence answered the mage whose face wrinkled, suddenly tensed. With the current threats, a disappearance of this kind augured nothing good and there was a place in town where it could be possible to find one of those threats. Determined, Erza ran off, almost persuaded to know where to find her disappeared friend.

/-Somewhere else-/

Gajeel and Levy had just gone out of the bookshop of the city, the Dragon Slayer carrying heavy bags filled with books whereas Levy had already begun to read one, her Gale-Force Reading Glasses perched on her nose. Gajeel had been muttering ever since they left the bookshop and Levy began to be fed up with it.

\- " Are you going to stop growling like a beast and tell me what disturbs you ? " She asked, annoyed by the behavior of her boyfriend.

\- " You are doing this on purpose, I'm sure. " Accused the dragon slayer, Levy don't understanding what he was getting at. " I am sure that you wait for me to be with you to buy all these books. I am not a carrier, you know. "

Levy just pout, puffing her cheeks, turning her head to the side.

\- " You really think that I could carry all this alone. " She asked, blowing through her nose which was as high as possible disparagingly, aiming to look outraged.

\- " No, you couldn't, shrimp. " Teased Gajeel, which made the young woman flush with anger. " But you could buy them separately, instead of waiting for me to ransack the shop. "

The couple continued its squabbles during several minutes, until Levy stumbled on a badly placed paving stone and fell flat on the paved road of the street, her book flying away, the whole thing happening under the eyes of Gajeel who savored this moment, laughing his ass off.

\- " GIHIHIHIHI! Well then, shrimp. Don't know how to walk ? Gihihihihi ! "

Levy says nothing, just sending a death glare to Gajeel before going to pick up her book. Meanwhile, Gajeel had shaken his head to stop his laughter and by doing so, he looked in the direction of a shop window in which he saw the reflection of a person he had already seen and who was smiling at him. The strangest part about that was that when he looked around him, the person was not in the street, as if the person was inside the glass.

\- " What the hell ? "

\- " Gajeel ! What are you looking at ? "

In the precise second Levy had finished her sentence, a flash of light blinded them both and the second just after that, Levy was alone, Gajeel having disappeared, leaving the bags of books behind him.

\- " Gajeel ? GAJEEL ?! "

The sudden disappearance of her companion made Levy feel anxious and scared at the same time, but she quickly got over it, her brain proceeding to the same analysis Erza did before and taking the same decision as the knight, she rushed towards in the opposite direction, towards a shop well-known to Fairy Tail.

/-In front of Diamonds Nest-/

Ignoring everything of what had just happened to their friends, Lucy and Natsu were sitting on a bench on the other side of the street in front of Diamonds Nest, Rachel's shop, waiting for the latter, hoping to find her here. Well, Natsu hoped for it. Lucy, from her part, was not as enthusiastic as her partner.

\- " Natsu, I told you. It's useless to wait for her here. If she is really working with the Strizer, and that seems to be the case, she's not going to stay here by knowing perfectly well that we are going to come to ask her questions. "

\- " Ah, really ? " Answered Natsu, his fixed on the shop.

\- " Yes, really. " Answered Lucy, gazing at the dragon. " As I said, we are wasting our time. "

Natsu didn't answered but she saw a light smile appearing to the corner of his lips, making a sign of his head towards the shop, ordering Lucy to look. And by turning her head, the blonde indeed saw Rachel stretching while repressing a yawn before opening the door of her shop.

\- " You said anything, Luce ? " Lucy put back her attention on the mage sitting by her side, who sent her a derisive smile, as if to say ' I was right '.

\- " Roh, shut up. " She grumbled while shoving him aside, making the dragon laugh while getting up with her, going straight towards the shop window of the store which they entered without any further ado. Hearing the bell of the door, Rachel answered from behind her counter where she had squatted to get some things.

\- " Sorry, but I am closed today. " She declared on a professional tone before getting up, seeing who were her customers. " Oh! It's you, Tsu-kun. And Lucy, also. What are you two wanting ? " She had tried to be pleasant, which was not hard with Natsu, but the memory of her last meeting with Lucy was not the best one to help her being nice and happy.

\- " Stop playing dumb. You perfectly know why we are here. " Began Lucy, not wanting to beat around the bush.

\- " Well, if you are here, it's to buy clothes, I suppose. But you'll both have to wait a little, I need to review my accounting. " Answered innocently Rachel, but even Natsu didn't felt like wasting time like that. He had to clear things up with her.

\- " Rachel, the mission you gave to me led me straight ahead into a trap. And strangely, it was a job which I couldn't refuse. I hope you have a good explanation for that ?"

\- "Hey, calm down. I did not know that there was a Strizer waiting for you over there. I would have said it to you if I had known about him." Rachel had spoken fast to try to justify herself, but maybe a little too fast since she had just betrayed sold herself at the same time.

\- "Well, isn't it strange ? How do you know that it was a Strizer. Better yet, how can you know about them in the first place ? No one said anything about them." Innocently noticed Lucy, Rachel biting her lips by realizing her blunder. Losing her innocent smile, Lucy continued. "Well, you better spill everything. Now !"

But before she was able to say anything, the characteristic noise of two people colliding was heard in front of the shop. Indeed, Erza and Levy, running like mad dogs, were so focused on their common destination that they had paid no mind to anything else and consequently had violently bumped into each other. They quickly recovered from the shock, excusing themselves to the other and entered the shop together, falling once more by trying to go through the door at the same time. Once in the shop, they paid almost no attention to Natsu and Lucy, throwing themselves on the counter to talk to Rachel.

\- "Uh, can I help you ?" Asked the seller, very satisfied to have a possibility to evade Natsu and Lucy at the moment, but Erza and Levy weren't going to put her in a better situation either.

\- "Everybody at the guild suspects you of having a link with the Strizers and I have just seen Jellal disappear in a flash of light. So I really hope that you will have no problem in helping me." Had threatened Erza, whose words surprised Levy.

\- "But I am here for the same thing." The mages turned to her, eyes wide opened. Rachel on the other hand was feeling more and more uncomfortable with how things were turning out. "Gajeel also disappeared in some kind of white light."

All then turned to Rachel whose emergency exit were now all condemned. Lowering her head and leaning on the counter, she rubbed the back of her head while sighing. When she raised the head, they saw in her eyes a new light which wasn't feeling right to them.

\- "A light ? Oh, you talking about this light ?"

By saying it, she had pointed a finger to a mirror which was behind the mages who turned to look at it. There was nothing weird about that mirror, except that Rachel's reflection had reached out towards them. And only her reflection because the real Rachel had not moved, arms crossed on her counter. It was already strange, but what followed was even more. The palm of Rachel's reflection began shining more and more, the white light which emanated from it filling the mirror which looked like a white panel for a moment before the light began shining outside the mirror, blinding the mages for a moment. When the light had finally disappeared, the girls noticed with horror that Natsu had also disappeared. But luckily, or unluckily, it depends on how you see it, he wasn't that far.

*Boom, boom* Strange noises, similar to someone punching on a glass panel, were heard in the shop, coming from the mirror and by looking again at the mirror, the girls understood where was Natsu AND what exactly was that noise. Natsu was inside the mirror, drumming since the inside, as if he tried to force open a door.

\- "But what the heck is that ?" Lucy exclaimed, not believing what she had under her eyes.

\- "I simply locked him into the mirror world." Simply explained Rachel. "Don't worry, there's nothing to be afraid of, even if somebody breaks the mirror. As long as I am conscious, he will remain booby-trapped inside that world. But he won't be all alone, he will have a little company."

Turning around brutally towards Rachel, Erza, Levy and Lucy saw that she had 2 pocket mirror in her hands, mirrors in which they could see Gajeel and Jellal who were also trying to escape their mirror jail. For the girls, there were no more doubts possible.

\- "So we were right to suspect you. You are one of them." Deducted Levy, which made Rachel chuckle before jumping over the counter, landing next to the girls, facing the door of her shop.

 ** _BÉLIER_** _ **DE QUARTZ !**_

Striking the ground with her hands, big pillars of see-through crystals collided with the three young women who were thrown outside of the shop, getting through the shop windows which burst into thousands of pieces which spread out on the paved street. While getting up, the mages saw Rachel go out of her shop, the glass shards floating to gather around her, swirling around the young woman who cleaned absently her rings made of different gemstones.

\- "Well, I guess I should introduce myself correctly now, isn't it ?" Declared Rachel with nonchalance, the glass bits floating around her like a thick cloud of gleaming butterfly. "Rachel Martin, Strizer of gemstones, to serve you." The 3 mages looked at the Strizer, already ready for everything to help their companions. But Rachel was not intimidated at all, putting herself in position, getting ready for a fight which was going to be anything but a simple catfight.

 **22 of ended, it's pleasing to see a fic going on like that and getting great support. I don't have much to say here except thanking you for your support, which helps me a lot continue. And don't forget that the next chapter might come later than usual since I'm not home next week-end. I hope that this chapter will have pleased you and that you will like what will follow. Goodbye !**

 **Next time : Girl Power ! Threatening reflections and gemstones attacks. The royal armor.**


	23. A little notice

Hello everybody!

I wanted to warn you that the next shapter will have some delay.

Nothing serious, let me explain. I was away for the weekend and I just returned. Usually, I write a chapter in French during the week and I do the translation during the weekend for this English version. So I published the French version of the chapter 23 on Friday but I didn't had time to do the translation for the same chapter. Since i also have another fic i write a little bit everyday and i try to have a steady rhythm for it. So here's what i'm gonna do. I'll pause the french version and i'll do the translation in the time i usually write the french version. You'll then get the 23rd chapter by the end of the week and after that, i'll go back to my usual rhythm. I hope you'll understand my choices.  
See you next time !


	24. Chap 23 : Diamond empress & royal armor

**Hello everybody ! Well, I feel like I should warn you that this fight in this chapter is not necessarily the one I prepared the most. I am going to do everything that I can to make it as pleasant as possible, but it is also possible that I end up losing myself in it. I hope that you will know how to forgive my errors if there is some.**

 **Well, let's drop the talk, let us get to the heart of the subject.**

 **Chapter 23 : Diamond empress and royal armor.**

The inhabitants were used to being disturbed by everything and anything in Magnolia because of the local guild. Between the daily fights which forced them, if they happen to walk near the guild when a fight broke out, to dodge tables, benches and even mages who were thrown through the windows, the constant risk of seeing the city collapses if Gildarts stumbles when he came to visit the master or even the numerous times when the city were partially, or even totally, destroyed because of an enemy of Fairy Tail, they had enough to be constantly on their guard, but the last threat in date had been much worse because, from what the inhabitants had been able to hear and understand, it could come from anywhere and at any time without warning. So, when the residents of the trade district heard glass being broken and body hitting the pavements of the street, they suspected that their insurances were once again to be useful to them. Even if they had some hopes that that it won't be as destructive as usual. Indeed, the girls of the guild were generally less destructive and more calm than their male counterparts and there were only women who stood in the street facing each other.

Erza, Levy and Lucy were standing still, looking closely at Rachel and the whirlwind of broken glass which surrounded her like a translucent defensive wall behind which the Strizer smiled, waiting patiently for somebody to launch the first offensive, which Lucy did, grabbing one of her keys.

 _" They may be sharp, but it still is glass pieces. He should be able to broke them easily. "_

 _ **OPEN, THE GATE TO THE GOLDEN BULL : TAURUS !**_

The spirit of the bull made its appearance, axe in his hands, ready for the fight, rushing at Rachel. But the presence of the massive bull did not intimidate the young woman who raised a hand in front of her, pointing towards the bull, the glass shards gathering in a unique point, forming what seemed to be a big sphere.

 _ **CANON DE VERRE !**_

All of the glass shards were then thrown like a glistening torrent on the spirit which was thrown backward, the glass slashing his stomach which had been struck quite hard by the attack, landing in a deafening crash in the building behind the mages who had had to throw themselves on the sides to avoid being taken by the bull. Once the spirit disappeared, too hurt to stay, the mages postponed their attention to the Strizer which called back her shards, re-forming the same whirlwind around her. But her whirlwind was not going to stay ready for a very long time.

 _ **ASSAUT DES COLIBRIS DE VERRE !**_

The glass pieces then began to change form, some assembling between them to form small birds with sharp beak and wing flapping furiously. Then, when Rachel's gave the signal, the birds attacked the mages, swirling around them by assailing them on all sides, their beaks sharp enough to drill the skin of the young women. Erza, thanks to her usual armor which she had put on and the two swords destroyed the birds that approached. Levy had summoned a SHIELD which she used to try and counter the pecks and in the other hand, she had a SWORD which she used to break the birds. Lucy from her part had called up Scorpio and Aries who used wool and sand to try to block birds, without much success regrettably. But the most crippling thing was the fact that the birds that were destroy immediately auto-repaired themselves, which then returned to the literally ceaseless assault. The mages even began to get tired when Levy finally had an idea.

\- "Lucy, Erza, protect me for a moment. I have a plan !"

Both mages did as they were told without discussing. Levy was not one of the most intelligent, if not THE most intelligent, members of the guild without a reason. So if she said she had an idea, it was worth trying.

 _ **SOLID SCRIPT COMBO : VACUUM HOLE !**_

A HOLE appeared on the ground but unlike the usual HOLE, a VACUUM had appeared in the middle and the hole began, like a vacuum cleaner, to suck on everything that was around it, which included the hundreds of translucent hummingbirds which interrupted their attack to try to escape the hole, alas unsuccessfully. In only a few seconds, the hummingbirds had all disappeared, leaving a defenseless and stunned Rachel behind them.

\- " _Mon dieu_ , I did not expect that. Well done, _chérie_ !" Congratulated Rachel, without really noticing that Erza was not going to let such an opportunity pass out.

\- " We'll now see what you are really made of, now that you cannot hide behind your pieces of shop window any more. " Erza equipped herself with a spear, that she began swirling, getting ready to attack the Strizer, who just smiled, sure of herself. Erza then thrust her spear but shockingly, Rachel had stopped the assault bare handed, with just a single hand on the weapon.

\- " I wasn't protecting myself from you. " She declared looking at Erza in the eyes, an almost savage light in her pupils. " I was protecting you from me. "

She then violently pulled on the spear, pulling Erza alongside it and, spinning on herself, Rachel brought down her tightened fist on the side of the redhead face who was thrown away towards her friends who helped her to get up while Rachel, ending her rotation, was once again facing the mages, arms stretched out towards the outside, pointing each one of them towards one end of the street they were situated in. By focusing just a little bit, the fairies heard noises of crackles coming from everywhere around them. Observing the neighborhood, they noticed that the windows of the surroundings buildings were cracking more and more as Rachel wrinkled the fingers. In a sudden movement, she closed her fists and all the windows of the street broke into pieces before beginning floating in the direction of Rachel, but this time, they did not just spun around her in a whirlwind. They fused in several glass spheres which orbited around the Strizer, some sort of waves appearing to their surfaces. But even before they were able to make do anything, Levy had reused her VACUUM HOLE to get rid of the glass formations one more time. After all, if that worked once, it could work twice, isn't it ?

No.

One of the spheres went straight to the hole of HOLE, blocking it and preventing the others from being inhaled. But it did not stop there.

 _ **PLUIE D'AIGUILLONS TRANSLUCIDES !**_

The other spheres began spinning quickly around the 3 mages while bombarding them with glass spikes like a crystal hurricane which surrounded them and trapped them, the spikes penetrating their flesh at every opportunity, their defense useless against such an assault at the moment, even Erza's armor was pierced every now and then. They were basically defenseless.

Or are they ?

 _ **REQUIP : ADAMANTINE ARMOR !**_

Taking on her most defensive armor, Erza raised her shields to protect herself and her friends from the ceaseless assaults of their opponent who was delighted by this show. The fairies were going to have to find a solution quickly because they weren't going to succeed by remaining hidden behind shields. Meanwhile, Rachel stayed stone-faced, but she seemed to lose patience. This small game was not going to amuse her for a very long time. It's after a good minute of bombardment that something finally happened. A light appeared in the middle of the group of mages before disappearing as fast as it had appeared, which intrigued Rachel. She knew the mages could be tricky if they could do as they wanted so she had to prepare something just in case. For that, she called one of her sphere back.

 _ **GANT À POINTES DE VERRE !**_

The sphere melted and wound around her right fist, forming a kind of big glove of glass covered with several centimeters long spikes. She advanced on the mages when suddenly, a hole opened under her feet and the Strizer understood what was this light which she had seen.

It was due to a summoning. Virgo's one to be precise.

The spirit just jumped out of the hole by delivering a powerful punch in Rachel's stomach who was thrown in the air, her breath taken away by the strike. She had however the reflex to strike Virgo back with her glass-covered arm, the strength of the blow sending the spirit crash on the ground before disappearing. Touching the ground, staggering slightly because of the damages caused by the blow of the spirit of the virgin, she called back her spheres which she transformed into a flock of glass javelins which gathered in a wide bristly sphere.

 _ **ANIMAUX DE VERRE : HÉRISSON !**_

The sphere began spinning on itself, accumulating some speed before throwing itself on the mages who, strangely, did not try to go away and even despite the fact that they had already tasted what it was to be cut by her glass, their bodies and faces, the latter especially real for Erza, wearing the marks left by the last assaults. But the reason of their stoicism was a small mage with the blue hair who had another ace up her sleeve.

 _ **SOLID SCRIPT : LAVA !**_

An enormous LAVA raised itself between the mages and the hedgehog, the latter stopped dead inhis tracks by the lava which also melted the glass in a matter of seconds. When the lava had cooled down and harden, Rachel's glass was stuck inside the volcanic rock and, since she couldn't call them back, that she was going to be defenseless for a moment, something the mages didn't hesitate to exploit.

 _ **REQUIP : GIANT ARMOR !**_

 _ **OPEN, GATE OF THE LION : LEO !**_

Erza changed her armor, now equipped with her armor specialized in throwing, and Lucy called upon her spirit of the lion and the latter attacked, his fists glittering with a golden light.

 _ **REGULUS IMPACT !**_

Leo shot a right jab at Rachel's face, a thing this inveterate womanizer would never do normally but the protection of his mistress was, as a spirit, more important than anything else. Rachel was throw back against the facade of her store, or at least what was left of it, in a wooden crash. She got up with difficulty, but her suffering was not about to stop here. Equipped with the infamous De-Malevo-Lance, Erza threw the spear on Rachel, who would have received it directly in her stomach, but she reacted just in time to cover herself with a gem like protection which prevented her from ending up totally impaled, but the spear took her for a ride anyway, bursting through several lines of buildings before stopping in a cloud of dust which covered the zone destroyed by the attack. Looking at the cloud of dust, the three mages, still on their guard, remained intrigued about what could have happened to the Strizer.

\- " You think that we have already finished it ? " Wondered Levy, a light hope in her voice. Hope that Erza killed shortly after.

\- " No, she is still conscious. If she had been killed or if she had lost consciousness, the boys would have been freed from their prison. " Reminded Erza without looking away from the cloud of dust which began to fall again. However, to the general surprise, Rachel, who could be seen spread eagle in the rubbles, disappeared suddenly in a small spark of light under the dumbfounded eyes of the 3 friends who wondered where she could have gone. They all got up and were ready for anything. Or almost.

 _ **RÉFLECTO-CANON !**_

The three mages cried in pain at the same time, perfectly synchronized. They had been shot in the back by an attack which had burned them, as if they had a violent sunburn, and yes, even Erza's armor couldn't protect her totally from the heat. This sensation reminded Lucy of her fight against the Strizer of the sun and so she was the first one to turn around towards the point of origin of the attack, expecting to find Xun there, but the only thing that she saw was a mirror which floated above ground level and in whom she saw Rachel's reflection who was looking at them scornfully. However, while the reflection shown Rachel standing in the middle of the group, there was nobody with them. Levy and the others then had no problem to understand what was happening.

\- " She can move in the mirror world ? " Theorized Levy aloud, which made Rachel, still in the mirror, confirmed the theory by moving closer to them.

\- " _Tout à fait_ , Levy. " She asserted by stepping out of the mirror, the surface of the latter waving whereas Rachel's real reflection was now visible as it should have always been. " My powers gives me a control over many things, and mirrors are part of my favorite assets. Let me show it to you."

 _ **ARSENAL DES MIROIRS : GALLERIE DES GLACES !**_

In a flurry of flashes, mirrors appeared all around the mages, suddenly more tensed as before. They were observing the mirrors, warily, except Erza who was staying focused on Rachel who was still standing in front of her.

\- "I don't know what you are trying to do. But I'm not going to let you do as you please."

 _ **REQUIP : BLACK WING ARMOR !**_

Now clad in her black winged armor, she threw herself on Rachel, piercing her with her sword. Rachel, taken aback by such a speed, did nothing to evade and was motionless, hiccupping with pain. But Erza felt that something was off for a reason. Looking down on Rachel's stomach, she noticed that there wasn't a single drop of blood was flowing out of the wound. Raising her head, she saw that Rachel was smiling at her before disappearing in a halo of light, a mirror behind her breaking down, the shards disappearing after that.

\- " _Désolé_ , but it was a reflection." The voice of Rachel came from the various mirrors which surrounded the mages. "Then one of my powers allows me to summon my reflections out of the mirror world. You want a demonstration ? With pleasure."

 _ **ESCOUADE DES REFLETS !**_

Following a bright flash, all of the Rachel came out of the mirrors and rushed at the 3 mages who didn't know which side they should protect themselves from. Levy was sending Solid Script after another to defend herself and bring down some clones at the same time. Lucy had changed into her Star Dress Cancer, cutting everything she could and Erza did the same with her Rabbit Armor. But the assault, which lasted several minutes, was far too violent for the mages, even Erza, took more blow than they could send back. After a while, the Rachel had returned to their respective mirror, leaving behind them mages covered with wounds and tired by the harassment of the reflections. But the mirror weren't finished yet.

 _ **RÉFLECTO-RAYON : TIR DE BARRAGE !**_

The mirrors began to shine then they start shooting rays of white reflected light on the 3 mages. Dodging those would have been easy if the beams weren't bouncing on the other mirrors, which created a zone in which the shootings harassed the mages relentlessly, exploiting the slightest dead angle and leaving no time to breathe to the girls who were unable to refrain from heaving a sigh of relief when the shootings stopped. Erza and Lucy were panting, but were globally fine, having already seen worse, which was not really the case for Levy who wasn't used to being manhandled as much as that. Rachel then got out of one of the mirrors, appearing in front of the faeries, smiling but the wound on her belly made her suffer nevertheless, a hand on the wound which bled but without being really dangerous for her since, like Lucy and Erza, she had already seen worse. Lucy grinded her teeth, grabbing another keys, well decided to put an end to all of this.

 _ **STAR DRESS SAGITTARIUS !**_

Preparing her bow, Lucy loaded several arrows of light which were all shot at Rachel. The arrows came in different angles, but it didn't impress the Strizer.

\- " Don't even try. Struggling won't help you. " Provoked Rachel, her mirrors repositioning with a gesture of her hand.

 _ **DÉVIATION RÉFLECTRICE !**_

Lucy's shots were intercepted by the mirrors and, the arrows being made of some kind of light, rained down on Lucy but this time, despite the astronomical quantity of missiles, she managed to dodge them much more easily, Rachel noticing that Lucy's eyes had taken a strange green color of the same tint as her dress.

" She uses the marksman's ability granted by her dress to keep an eye on the arrows and dodge them*. Furthermore, it may be easier to dodge for her since those are her shots. Let us see how far she can push herself with that technique. " Wondered Rachel before noticing that some of her mirrors were slightly cracking. The intensity of the shootings became dangerous, also she decided to put an end to what Lucy was doing.

( *: I'm implying that a marksman's eyes had to be sharp to spot his targets, thus this Star Dress grants her the same capacity.)

 _ **ACCÉLÉRATION RÉFLECTRICE !**_

The mirrors partially repaired themselves but the mages noticed that Lucy had more and more difficulty, despite the boost provided by her dress, to dodge the shots which were getting closer and closer to reach their target. The shots were spinning faster with every rebound. And the inevitable happened. Lucy lost track of the shots despite her improved eyes and was literally crushed by her own arrows, the stellar spirit mage collapsing on the ground, out of commission even if the desire to fight was still there. But Erza was there, and took her place. And she had a plan.

 _ **REQUIP : HEAVEN WHEEL ARMOR !**_

Rachel smiled almost triumphantly by seeing the mage taking on her armor, but what she did took her by surprise. She pointed every sword towards a mirror and she broke them all at the same time, which made Rachel lose her smile. Erza called her swords back and got ready to charge at Rachel when the latter surprised the mages by doing something no one expected.

\- " Wow, stop right now ! " She shouted forming a T with her hands. " I hadn't planned all of this ! I'm off ! "

And in a flash, she disappeared, leaving stunned mages behind her. Erza couldn't understand why she gave up like this, but she nevertheless to went her friends. Talking about friends, Levy was thinking deeply. There was something they were missing. She began thinking about the boys, since she had to start somewhere.

" Why did she runs away ? She could hide in a mirror, even go at the other end of the city, unless she can't stay in the mirror world for a very long time and that she can't go out wherever she want but just near the place where she entered it ? It's probably the reason that. " Thought Levy " And when she showed us Gajeel and the others, they were in mirrors, but there was no mirror when Gajeel disappeared. He was standing in front of a shop window, not in front of a … Wait ? "

Suddenly, everything clicked in the small mage head, who raised her head to look at Erza, who held out her hand to Lucy. But in the eyes of the latter, she saw something who confirmed what she thought.

\- " ERZA ! GET AWAY FROM HER ! " But regrettably, Levy's shout reached the ears of the redhead one second too late. A hand, then a whole body seemed to go out of Lucy's eye, said arm going to pierce Erza right under her right shoulder, a sheaf of blood spilling from her mouth slightly opened by the surprise, Erza getting thrown on the ground, as shocked as Lucy. Rachel had just appeared out of Lucy's eyes, Levy bringing them the explanation to that.

\- " She doesn't control only mirrors. She controls the reflections in a global way. " Explained Levy, which made the Strizer smile.

\- "Indeed. You understood, but a little too late, I'm afraid." The mirrors reappeared around her, but all the reflections around her were shining. "Whatever you are doing, as long as I have access to the slightest reflection, I'll have ways to attack you or even run away if I have to. Give up, you have no chance to win."

\- "Maybe, but you have just confirmed something else. When you tell you have to have access to a reflection, it means that you only those in whom YOU are reflected." Rachel squinted, not understanding what she wanted to mean there whereas Lucy and Erza just looked at the two, convinced that their partner had a plan. It was not in Levy's habit to do preposterous things. "Hence my question : what would happen if there is NO reflections ?"

Rachel opened wide eyes : Levy had understood and judging by her wild carnivorous smile, sign that Gajeel influenced her way much more than they though, that she indeed had a plan, Lucy and Erza already ready to act.

 _ **SOLID SCRIPT : DARKNESS !**_

Coming out of nowhere, a black gigantic DARKNESS appeared and diluted in the air, forming an opaque cloud which blocked all the light. Not leaving Rachel the time to think about what she could do, Lucy and Erza moved into the attack.

 _ **STAR DRESS CANCER !**_

 _ **TRINITY SWORD !**_

Erza and Lucy brought down their swords at the same time on the Strizer which felt the metal penetrate her flesh, the wounds bleeding dangerously, but it was not going to stop there for her.

 _ **SOLID SCRIPT COMBO : FIRE BOMB TORNADO !**_

A wide and swirling TORNADO, filled with FIRE and BOMB tore the darkness and swallowed the fashion queen who added burns to the list of her wounds, but also bruises due to her great and brutal shock with the ground on which her body fell heavily after several seconds of gliding flight. She got up after a few seconds and by seeing her face, the mages couldn't help but feel proud of themselves. No more smile on the now bruised face of the Strizer who was now distorted by a deep anger. Her uncombed and burned hair fell in irregular bangs on her face, which she wiped with the back of her hand to remove the trickle of blood flowing on her temple.

\- "Don't go thinking that it's enough to ger rid of me, girls !" She declared through clenched teeth. "I'm going to show you why I am the Strizer of gemstones. Glass and mirrors, those are just an aspect of my powers. And now, it's time to take out the big guns."

 _ **EMPERATRICE DES GEMMES !**_

An intense light blinded the mages for a few seconds, forcing them to look away. But if Rachel had not taken the opportunity to attack, it is that she had something else planned and the fairies had a hard time feeling comfortable with what they had in front of them.

Rachel had undergone a total makeover. Her garment had all without any exception replaced by an armor that looked like a dress which seemed completely made of precious gemstones. The longline bra was made of a mixture of ruby and amethyst, shards of sapphires, topazes and emeralds traveled the long cape which hung attached to her shoulder straps of aquamarine, which also composed her leg warmers, strewed with pink amethysts fragments. She was literally shining, the sunlight being reflected on the stones, creating a halo of multicolored light around her. Being afraid that so much light could create other reflections, Levy got ready to call on DARKNESS again, but Rachel did not leave her the opportunity. She covered the distance which separated her from Levy in an instant, sliding on the ground as if she had become a ghost.

 _ **POINTE DE RUBIS !**_

Rachel's leg covered itself with a thick slightly sharp layer of ruby which she used to struck the mage with such a strength the shockwave of the attack cracked the ground. The spike on the tip of her feet sank into Levy's side which bent over in pain before being beat up by Rachel who threw kicks after kicks at a blinding speed, leaving not a single moment to Levy to take a breath. And before the others were not able to move to stop Rachel, the latter ended it.

 _ **BÉLIER D'ÉMERAUDE !**_

An enormous ram, cut in an enormous piece of emerald, crushed Levy who found herself stuck on the crystal before ending crushed against a wall. Sandwiched between stone and emerald, Levy remained motionless a single moment before collapsing on the ground, completely out cold, which frightened the other mages. Erza recovered rather fast to attack Rachel.

 _ **REQUIP : PURGATORY ARMOR !**_

Now equipped with her famous black armor armed with her spiked mace dashing towards Rachel, determined to avenge Levy, but this armor had a bad reputation. Considered powerful, it never held two seconds each times Erza had used it. And today was not different.

 _ **JAVELOT DE SAPHIR !**_

In a single movement, Rachel threw a spear cut in a blue ore on Erza, the mage struck quite hard by the crystal missile which pierced her armor like it was made of card box, in the same way as she had made done with the De-Malevo-Lance, Erza stomach was pierced by the spear, the mage rolling on the ground on several meters before stopping. Despite her wounds, she got ready to get up when Rachel, aware of the problems Erza could cause to her, decided against it.

 _ **ÉTREINTE DE TOPAZE !**_

A mass of yellow topaz appeared around Erza, preventing her from moving. She tried to free herself but the stone was too hard, not breaking fast enough to allow her to go. Prisoner of the block of precious stone, she could do nothing and could only watch what will happen next, the wound on her stomach making her suffer horribly.

\- " LEVY ! ERZA ! " Roared Lucy by seeing her best friends being rendered unable to fight before turning to Rachel, her eyes filled with hatred. " You are going to pay for what you did to them ! "

\- " Come on, I'm waiting for you. " Taunted Rachel, instigating Lucy's fury.

 _ **STAR DRESS : LEO !**_

Dressed with the powers of the spirit of the Lion, Lucy threw himself on Rachel, who did not move at all, as if she already know what will happen.

 _ **REGULUS IMPACT !**_

The fist, charged with light, of the beautiful blonde came in contact with Rachel, an explosion of light and dust wrapped both young women, making them unable to see each other. But when the dust fell again, she saw that Rachel had intercepted her blow with a hand covered in amethyst. Closing her hand on Lucy's one to immobilize her, Rachel covered her other hand with a glove of diamond.

 _ **DIRECT DESCTRUTEUR DE DIAMANT !**_

A diamond gloved fist crashed on Lucy's face who was trapped on the spot, Rachel's hand preventing her from being sent flying by the attack, making Lucy's arm also suffered. Using the hand which she had closed on her opponent, she pulled her towards her before throwing her far off, Lucy's body, like a ragdoll, rolled on the ground violently, stopping a dozens of meters away from Rachel, who looked at the glove of amethyst with a critical eye.

\- " I don't really know what you expected. " Rachel wondered. " I use ores from my world. It maybe because of that that you dealt some damages on my stones. " She looked at her glove made of amethyst which was cracked. " It is probably the difference between our worlds, but it's not as if you had what was needed to beat me, anyway. "

Hearing this statement, Lucy, still on the ground, realized that she was wrong. She did had a way to fight who could work. It was risky, but she had to take the risk, she thought to herself, a hand going to her waist. From her part, Rachel turned to the guild, looking intrigued.

\- " I think that this is weird, by the way. With the noise and chaos we are causing, it is strange that nobody from the guild came to see what was happening. Let's go visit them. I might find some challenge there, who know. " Decided Rachel, still dressed in her dress-like armor of gemstone. Erza struggled to try to go out of her prison unsuccessfully, but everybody stopped what they were doing with what happened next.

A powerful wave of magic was felt coming from behind Rachel, who turned around, looking in the direction of this new source of energy with Erza. But what they saw there shocked them to their core.

In front of them stood Lucy, wearing, if they should guess, a new Star Dress but by seeing the Star Dress in question, Erza was almost jealous of the blonde. She was dressed in some kind of plate armor made of shining metal. The upper part of her body was covered by a white chest plate, her shoulder were protected by green pointed pauldrons and her forearms were hidden behind plate made of the same metal as the chest plate. Below the armor, she was wearing a chainmail and green gloves were covering her hands. The same kind of armor as the upper part of her body covered her legs, knees protected by golden pieces of armor shaped like stars, gold that also composed the waist guard made of two pointed plates covering the top of her legs. Her hair was combed in a long ponytail, which got out of the top of a kind of helmet identical to the one Erza's was wearing in her Sea Empress Armor, but with stars standing where Erza's had fins. She was carrying a long sword in a hand, whereas a shield covered with the symbols of the constellations stood on the other hand. The most impressive was not the armor, which was impressive nonetheless, but the power which radiate from Lucy who literally shone with power. Rachel and Erza didn't needed a long time of reflection to understand what she had done and the redhead was the first to break the silence.

\- " Is that … The Star Dress of the Celestial Spirit King ? " She wondered in a loud voice while looking with admiration at this armor which made her a little jealous of Lucy.

\- " AHAHAHAHAHAH ! " Laughed Rachel, returning her attention on Lucy. " You are completely out of your mind, girl ! The King possesses divine powers, your body will never withstand it ! "

\- " You're right. " Admitted Lucy, whose face began to cover itself with small cracks. " But even if it is only for a few minutes maximum, during this short period, I'll be more than strong enough to beat you. "

\- "AS IF !"

 _ **RAFALE DE POINTES EN DIAMANTS !**_

Rachel called upon her diamonds and threw a huge wave of small but deadly diamonds shards at Lucy who didn't moved. Instead, she just raised her shield and the diamonds disappeared as they came close to her. They weren't destroyed, they were sent somewhere else thanks to the Teleportation power the armor was granting her. Rachel was just then realizing what was happening. Lucy's body might break due to that strength, but as long as she was standing, she was far too powerful. And Lucy proved her right by finally walking the talk by disappearing to reappear the in the next second behind Rachel, her sword raised. While we would have been able to believe that nothing happened, Rachel's face showed the opposite. Struck in a flash by the sword charged with stellar spirit energy, her dress-like armor got blown into smithereens as if it had been made of glass, a profound laceration crossing her body from her right shoulder to her left-hand side near her waist. Lucy left Rachel, who writhed in pain on the ground, to visit Erza, whom she freed in just a swing of her sword, the topaz breaking into small pieces like a glass had fallen on the ground.

\- " Thank you, Lucy. And this armor, the power it release is impressive. " Commented Erza, filled with admiration for this armor which she was hesitating to touch.

\- " That's nothing. " Answered Lucy with a smile which Erza found quite wrinkled. " But we should finish it quick if we … GAH ! " Lucy spat without warning a rather impressive sheaf of blood that greatly worried Erza, but Lucy knew where this was coming from. " I'm not going to be able to keep this armor on for a very long time. We have to finish it. "

\- " Sorry, but I'm not going to stay here and wait for you beat me. " Spat Rachel who had got up, blood gushing from her mouth and wound. " I just have to wait for you to let go of your armor to finish you all ! "

Once these words were pronounced, she ran towards a fragment of mirror which was not far on the ground, reminder of what happen before. Erza didn't reacted quickly enough to stop her and Lucy, taken by another hemoglobin vomiting, could do nothing either. But it was without taking into account the 3rd member of the group.

 _ **SOLID SCRIPT COMBO : NUMB SLEEP !**_

Rachel was struck right in the face by a NUMB SLEEP of cloudy aspect and in a matter of only a few seconds, she collapsed on the ground, sending a look toward Levy, the latter still stretched out on the ground, her arm stretched out towards her with a derisive smile on her face.

\- "Bitch". It was the only word Rachel was able to pronounce before falling asleep. Erza and Lucy were relieved to see their blue-haired friend awake, but the blunette reminded them that they still had works to do.

\- " She's not going to sleep for a very long time, get rid of her as quickly as possible ! "

\- " Erza, throw her as high as possible. I will *GAH* finish it but I don't want the city to suffer more than it already did. " Asked Lucy, still spitting some blood while the cracks on her face kept on appearing and widening, letting loose what seemed to be the pure energy which was consuming her slowly.

 _ **REQUIP : GIANT ARMOR !**_

Erza ran, grabbing a sleepy Rachel with her high-powered hand and threw her high into the sky, Lucy jumping in her suite. When Rachel woke up, she was way over the city, face to face with Lucy whose sword shone with a dangerous dark blue energy and covered with stars looking white points. She tried to call her gemstones to protect herself but regrettably, her body, under the influence of NUMB SLEEP, was still numbed and refused to obey. She understood that this fight was indeed finished. She had lost.

 _ **METEOR BLADE !**_

Lucy, swinging down her arm, struck Rachel with her sword, an explosion of stellar energy gobbling up the Strizer which give a shrill roaring which reverberated in all the city. The power of the explosion and its shockwave were so powerful that city walls all shooks, windows cracking due to the vibration, which worried the inhabitants but since they didn't felt other shocks, they quickly moved on. Erza, in spite of her wounds, caught Lucy in her arms, the blonde mage having got rid of her armor just after she finished Rachel to avoid suffering any longer. Bringing the blonde to Levy, Erza saw lights coming out of glass shards who were scattered almost everywhere and a few seconds later, Natsu, Gajeel and Jellal reappeared and, after a few seconds needed to understand where they were, they rushed to their friends.

\- " Shit, girls. You rock ! " Complimented Gajeel who had taken Levy in his arms, the words of the Dragon Slayer of metal intriguing the girls.

\- " We saw everything. " Explained Natsu, helping Lucy to stay standing up. " Moreover Lucy, it wasn't a little bit dangerous to do that? The thing with the King ? "

\- " Hey, you aren't one who can tell me that I did something dangerous, mister hot head. " Lucy had joked with a small hesitating smile, suffering enormously because of her wounds, blood still flowing out of her mouth, even if it wasn't as bad as before. " Besides, I had no other choices if I wanted to get rid of her. "

They set off in the direction of the guild silently, each boy taking care of his respective girlfriend/partner. But after a small moment of hesitation, Jellal came up with a question that Rachel has asked herself before Lucy destroyed her.

\- " Why nobody from the guild came ? " Jellal said, the others nodding silently since they also asked themselves the question. " There is a big fight in town but there is no one who comes to see what is happening. "

\- " You think that they have problems ? " Asked Levy but before anyone had a chance to, somebody else answered her.

\- " They are in a meeting. "

Turning their head to the voice which they had just heard, they first saw Rachel, completely out of commission, burned and covered in bruises and cuts, which had landed in front of the guild, forming a crater in the pavement. But the voice came from the other side the crater, from a man with a sun-tanned skin and short sand-colored hair. His brown eyes shone in the sun while he looked at the mages, arms crossed and a small smile stretching his lips. He wore some kind of vest with long sleeve that looked like a tailcoat, with the back being longer than the front and a pair of baggy pants, the whole holding colored in beige, brown and orange, with a small pair of glasses perched down on his nose.

\- " In a meeting ? But who are you ? " Asked Natsu who, liked the others, didn't like the fact that someone they didn't knew was standing casually in front of the guild as if he was guarding the building entrance like some kind of bouncer.

\- " I am Kareem Merabet, Strizer of the desert. " His words surprised the mages who felt ill at ease all of a sudden and it was understandable why they felt like this : they clearly were not ready to face one of these guys so early after they just finished fighting another one. The boys could fight, but they'd also have to protect the girls and they'd be put at a disadvantage doing that. " You probably already know it but there is only 2 of us left, me included. There were recents events which obliged us to change our plans. "

\- " And what changes are we talking about, exactly? " Asked Jellal.

\- " We decided that it's about time. " Kareem recovered a little, suddenly more serious. " It's time to explain to you why we came. "

The mages looked at each other, without knowing what to think of that, but they knew that whatever they thought, what was happening inside the guild was probably going to change everything.

 **OK ! And 23 ! And we are finally going to know what the Strizers want ! I hope that you liked this chapter despite the delay in publication (I explained why in the notice I posted before this chapter) and that you will like the next ones. See you !**

 **Next time : The 2 Strizers that didn't fought. Strizers and monsters : origin and explanation.**


	25. Chapter 24 : Reasons and objectives

**AND I AM BACK ! Well, I need to calm down on the other hand because I think that a 2 weeks gap isn't that big if we compare it the kind of delay some stories have on this website. But I had warned you of this extension in the note published previously. Anyway, let us stay concentrated on the task at hand and let us start again where we left it.**

 **I am not the owner of Fairy Tail, only the Strizers and their enemies belong to me.**

 **Here we go !**

 **Chapter 24 : Strizers: origin and objectives.**

Incomprehension. Indicate the lack of comprehension or understanding; inability to understand.

Surprise. State of mind when meeting something unexpected.

Two words which defined particularly well the 6 mages who were standing in front of their guild felt at this moment. Jellal, Natsu and Gajeel, supporting respectively Erza, Lucy and Levy, still suffering after their victory obtained in the pain against Rachel, the Strizer of gemstones, were surprised by this plot twist which they didn't understand. They were gazing with unbelieving look at Kareem, Strizer of the desert, who was standing in front of the door of the guild as if he was waiting for some guests, which was probably the case.

\- " When you mention wanting to tell us why you came, what does it implies exactly ? " Asked Jellal, very intrigued by what this man was insinuating.

\- " Everything, Jellal. Everything. " Simply answered Kareem, pushing his glasses back up on his nose. " It's going to be about who we are, what those monsters you saw in the north are, how we are linked to them and of course, what we are hoping to achieve in this world. "

The mages stayed skeptical, they were shy, on their guard and Kareem couldn't hold it against them seeing what his companions did to them before. However, a groan from girls were going to make the negotiation simpler. By hearing the girls moan in pain, the boys remembered themselves that they were seriously injured and needed to be taken care of immediately. Kareem jumped at the opportunity to 'force' them to follow him.

\- " I have the impression that you NEED to follow me, unless you would prefer to let them die in the middle of the street ? " Proposed the Strizer by pointing at the 3 girls, the 3 other mages looking at him with a look in his eyes saying ' you think you're funny ? ' before complying to his request, but they didn't really had any choices : the health of the girls passed before the rest. They began to approach the Strizer but the latter stopped them quickly.

\- " No, stop! " He ordered, as if he just remembered something, the conscious mages stun for a moment. What does he wanted, now ? " Wait just a moment. "

He swept the space in front of him with his hand and the fairies saw an orange line starting to appear on the ground and which seemed to circle the whole guild. A portion of the line faded in front of him and he took a step towards the back, inviting them to pass by the hole he created. The mages stayed still for a moment, looking at him as if he had just did the lamest joke in the world.

\- " What the fuck was that, now ? " Asked Natsu, whose patience was running thin, not understanding what he was playing at.

\- " I opened a safe way in my DRYING RUNE WALL. Now you can pass. Oh and while I'm thinking about it. " He walked through the hole in the circle and went to collect Rachel's bruised and unconscious body, still laying at the bottom of her crater, under the still jaded eyes of the mages.

\- " DRYING RUNE WALL ? What is that ? " asked Gajeel, unbelieving and annoyed.

\- " One of my techniques. A kind of invisible wall which dries out everything that passes through it. Let me show you how it works. "

He plunged one of his hands into his pocket and pulled out an orange which he threw towards the guild. But when it reached the place where the orange line was, the fruit became, in the space of a few seconds, a crumpled and dried out fruit, as if it stayed in the sunlight for many weeks after being emptied of all of its juice. The mages, once the slight surprise had passed, followed Kareem up to the door which he opened widely without saying a word, as if he was at home.

\- " Hey, Stan ! The latecomers are there. "

The 6 newcomers still didn't know why their friends hadn't come while the girls fought in town but the atmosphere could give them a small clue about that. Everybody was hyper tensed, like frozen by something, or rather somebody, probably the aforementioned Stan. In front of all of the mages was held a man with dark hair raised on his head, his brown eyes were so clear that they seemed almost yellow. He wore a long white doctor blouse with black pants, with yellow and white sneakers and under the blouse, he wore a yellow T-shirt with a black jacket. In term of accessories, he wore a pair of black fingerless gloves and he had a silver headband on his head, in a ninja way, keeping his bangs away from his eyes.

\- " On the other hand, Stan, before beginning the explanations, it would be necessary to look after the girls. " Asked Kareem but Stan just heaved a sigh.

\- " What a pain in the ass, we are going to waste time again. " He complained by turning around towards his colleague and the mages who were by his side, his look settling on Rachel before releasing another heavy sigh. " And there's that dumbass who just go and fuck herself up, I didn't need any more of those shit. "

\- " You plan to leave them like that, then ? " Kareem wondered by opening wide eyes. " You'd be a real disappointment as doctor if you did. "

Stan looked at him, sending him a dark glare, the Strizer of the desert knowing perfectly well that he had touched the weak point of his colleague who released yet another sigh before getting up.

\- " Pfff, put them on the tables over there. " He ordered by gesturing to tables in question, Kareem going to them the next second, the mages hesitating a moment before following him. Once the 4 girls were put on the tables, Stan took place in front of them, observing their wounds closely.

\- " Humpf, it's going to need some work here. " Mumbled the doctor before turning to the mages. " Hey, the little girl and the old bat, come here, I am going to need help on this one. "

Wendy and Porlyusica, who knew perfectly well that he was talking to them, went out of the group. Porlyusica seemed irritated, which was understandable seen that she had been called an old bat by this young man but she moved forward nevertheless to the young man, worried for the health of the fairies. Wendy from her part seemed more than tensed, hesitating to move but she felt a hand on her shoulder which made her turn around to see that it was Romeo who was giving her a reassuring smile which calmed Wendy who returned his smile. They stayed like that for several long seconds before being interrupted by someone, namely Charla, who did not seem amused by the situation contrary to the other mages, the white cat clearing her throat which send the two young mages back on Earth, both reddening by realizing what they had just done. Wendy then went to join Porlyusica and together, they began to work, working on Erza, Lucy and Levy while Stan focused on Rachel. Natsu, which was not far from the improvised operation tables with Jellal and Gajeel, was focused on Lucy and all the while asking a question linked with something they wondered about a little earlier.

\- " Then it is you who had prevented the others from going out to come to see what was happening in the city ? "

\- " Indeed. " Confirmed Makarov, still sitting on the bar. " But they didn't say much. They just made us stay here. "

\- " And how did they do that ? " Asked Gajeel, who had asked his question without looking away from Levy, whom Wendy was currently healing.

\- " I think that it's better to explain it by going back to the beginning. " Laxus had answered from the bar on which he was leaning, his face twisted by a deep desire to twist the neck of those Strizers. " It began a few hours ago after you all left to do whatever you had to do. "

/- Flashback, a little before the beginning of the fight against Rachel -/

The guild took advantage of a peace more than welcome by everybody. After all, without Gajeel nor Natsu, the mages had lost 2 of their main sources of problem and brawl. Wendy and Romeo were looking for a mission to do together, the two young mages blushing slightly every time their hands brushed, the whole ordeal happening under the amused looks of some members of the guild like Mirajane and a disapproving Charla who blushes abruptly by feeling Happy settling near her, inviting her to drink some tea, Alzack and Bisca looked at Asuka who was busy replaying her small heroic scene against the Strizer of the earth with the participation, voluntary or not, of several mages, everything happening much to the joy of several people like Makarov or Evergreen who was very amused seeing Elfman playing the role of the golem. Laxus was discussing with Gildarts, Lisanna distributed drinks and food with Kinana, Gray and Juvia shared an ice cream, sitting quietly, traces of their fight against Ragnar still present but of much lesser importance. In brief, everything went well. But obviously, that was not going to last. Makarov had just felt something strange who worried him greatly. He could be mistaken, but he had to be sure and for that, he called on to one of his 'sons'.

\- " Warren, can you come here one moment. "

\- " Yes, I'm coming. " Warren, who sat at a table with Max, Reedus and Vijeeter, got up to join Makarov, who was looking more and more worried. " You need anything ? "

\- " Try to contact Jellal and Gajeel. " Looking up at Warren's surprised gaze, he gave some more explanation more, several pairs of eyes now turning to him. " Their magic presence totally disappeared all of a sudden. I need a confirmation about where they are. "

Suddenly more worried, the suspicions of their master being rarely false, the telepathist did as he was told, trying to establish a connection with his friends. But regrettably, it was only confirming what thought Makarov.

\- " I can't contact them. It's as if they are too far. " This worried the rest of the guild, the cheerfulness having totally disappeared for the benefit of a growing concern.

\- " Maybe they left the city ? " Proposed Romeo, not being able to conceive that something really bad could have happen to them, but alas Makarov didn't share his enthusiasm.

\- " I am afraid that it is not so simple, Romeo. " Answered Makarov, his face somber. Wendy put an hand on the shoulder of Romeo in a comforting gesture whereas Makarov got up, finding itself standing on the bar. " I ignore what is happening right now, but I won't stand still and see my children returning wounded anymore. This time, I'm going. "

He began to walk to the door, the mages not knowing if they had to follow him or let him do as he wanted. But they had no leisure to decide because the door opened by itself. Or almost. To the surprise of the mages, two people were standing on the other side of the door and, after a few seconds, they broke the silence which they had brought down on the guild.

\- " Sorry, but we cannot let you intervene, Mr. Dreyar. " Going out of the shadow, the 2 newcomers did an impression with the mages who had all already understood what they were. " You certainly already know that once our fights started, we never authorize outside intervention. Thus you're going to need to let them manage thing on their own. "

Feeling the presence of Natsu disappearing as well as a peak of energy signs that other mages were fighting, the mages need to leave and go help their friends was becoming even stronger and they were not going to be passive.

\- " We have no time to lose with this bullshit. " Snapped Laxus by taking place next to his grandfather, looking at the Strizers. " Go away or we'll be forced to hurt you. "

\- " Please, calm down. We can reach an agreement without any violence, can we ? "

 _ **POLARIZING WAVE !**_

No they couldn't. Kareem attempt to appease the situation was reduced to nothing by Stan who had thrown a wave of what seemed to be small red and blue sparks on the mages who, although having been struck quite hard, had felt nothing except for a small itch. Although nothing bad was really done, the aggression wasn't going to be forgiven.

\- " If you want to stay standing here that much, I am going to help you staying still. " Had thrown Evergreen, a hand reaching for her glasses. But Stan snapped his fingers and the following moment, the glasses of Evergreen found themselves stuck on her face.

\- " Wait … What ? " Evergreen was actually pulling on her glasses with her two hands but it didn't matter what she was doing, they didn't want to move. " They are stuck on my face, what is this shit ? "

 _ **BEAST ARM : IRON BULL !**_

\- " What have you done to her ? Answer ! " Roared Elfman by throwing himself on Stan, his arm having been transformed into a big metallic arm, ready to strike but Stan snap his fingers again which slowed Elfman down, but it did not stop there. The slowing down was transformed into a full stop then into a repelling, Elfman being propelled far from Stan by an invisible strength.

\- " What … What the hell was that ? " Exclaimed Lisanna by seeing her brother flying through the building.

\- " It doesn't really matter, Lisanna. Well, not anymore. " Answered calmly Freed, which intrigued the mages before seeing purple symbols appearing on the ground, surrounding the Strizers. " If they do not want to move, then let's let them stay here. As long as they are in this zone, the use of powers will be forbidden to them. " The plan was ingenious and the mages already were smiling with satisfaction but the absence of reaction on behalf of Stan made them felt like they missed something.

\- " It is a really good plan. " Admitted Stan by picking his ear with one of his little fingers. " On the other hand, I don't really see the interest of trapping just one person. "

Freed and the others stayed without understanding but by looking at Kareem closely, they saw his body bending like a reflection in a distorting mirror and after a few seconds, he had disappeared, leaving only Stan in the trap. The fairies wondered on the other hand where the other Strizer could be when Freed felt a hand grabbing his wrist. He turned his head and came face to face with Kareem who was smiling at him, quite proud, raising the hand of Freed until it was placed between both of their face.

 _ **DRY TOUCH !**_

The hand of Kareem took on an aura of weak orange light and, to the surprise and the horror of everyone, the hand of Freed began to dry out visibly, tearing away shouts of horrors from several people, and pain in the case of the green haired mage. Several people threw(cast) themselves on the Strizer to stop him or on Freed to try and help him, like Wendy who didn't wait to cure the hand of the mage.

\- " It is incredible. " Commented Wendy by looking after Freed. " It's as if all the water of your hand had been sucked up outside of your body. "

\- "It is the case." The answer reached them from the place where was Stan was still held prisoner, Kareem having returned to his sides. "Let me introduce myself. Kareem Merabet, Strizer of the desert. And know that I would have been able to bring him down to dust entirely if I had wanted to. So, I'd like Freed to free my companion if he doesn't want to see this cute little girl being transformed into a cute heap of sand." He ended his sentence by holding in front of him at arm's length Asuka who struggled as much as she could under the horrified looks of the mages, but no one was as horrified than her parents.

\- "ASUKA !" Shouted Bisca, horrified at the idea that his daughter can undergo such a fate. But Freed preferred to free a potential monster rather than let the girl die. So, he did as he was told and the cage of runes disappeared, giving all his freedom back to Stan.

\- "Well, since he introduced himself, I suppose that I should also do it ?" Said Stan while passing a hand through his hair. "I'm Stanley O' Brien. Strizer of the lightning."

\- "The lightning ?" Repeated Laxus, suddenly interested. "But how did you pushed away Elfman and stuck the glasses of Evergreen."

\- "Have you ever heard about magnetism ?" Stanley sighed, like he was irritated by their ignorance. "My first 'attack' was to place positive or negative charges on everything here. And the opposite poles attract while the identical poles pushed themselves away. I am positively charge and since Elfman was positively loaded too, it pushed him far away from me."

\- "And you gave different charges to Ever and her glasses to prevent her from removing them." Deducted Bickslow from it.

\- "Exactly. And Evergreen is negatively charged, by the way. Look."

He snapped his fingers again, a gesture which was used 'to activate' the magnetic loads and so, Ever was then attracted to Elfman like an iron ball attracted by a magnet, both mages finding themselves literally stuck one to another, unable to move.

\- "And since you're all polarized, I can easily stuck you all together to prevent you from leaving. So you'd better avoid doing anything tricky, am I clear ? " Stanley's tone aimed to be threatening, but it didn't impress Laxus who stood up to him.

\- " And if we refuse? " Stan support his gaze one moment before answering.

\- " Did you know that the brain 'decision' are transmitted by electric impulses via the neurons ? " Laxus watched him showing off his science without understanding what he was getting at. " Can you guess what will happen if I shut down all of your nervous transmissions by absorbing those electric impulses ? "

The mages needed some time to think about what he was implying, but when they finally understood what it meant, they were much more tensed all of a sudden. The prospect of becoming almost literally braindead was not really something that they wished for at the moment.

\- " Well, I see that we all agree about that. " He ends, apparently satisfied, turning to Kareem. " Go outside, set up your barrier just in case and wait for the latecomers. I hope that they won't be too long : there's a lot of things to be said. "

/- End of the flashback-/

\- " After that, we waited for your return but it was about time you arrived. " Ended Laxus, pointing at Stanley, arms crossed. " He was about to get mad waiting for you. "

\- " I am not known for my patience, everybody will tell it you. " Retorted Stanley who had just ended taking care of Rachel, Wendy and Porlyusica also finishing with the three other girls.

\- " As a doctor, he has patients, but he is quite impatient. "

Everybody turned to look at Kareem, who was laughing alone at his own joke, all of them showing their lack of interest for his lame ass joke. But they all returned their attention quickly on Stanley who, his desire to strangle Kareem gone, got ready to get to the heart of the subject.

\- " In our world, there are 12 entities which more or less created our universe. Once they created the universe, they let them evolve on their own without really intervening. They are in a sense the guardians of our world. " Stanley paused to verify that everybody followed what he was saying, which was the case. Everybody had their eyes aimed at him, the faces of the mages all marked by a profound reflection, not knowing if they could totally trust what he said. And that implied to ask questions, which Gray was the first one to do.

\- " They are 12, you say ? This is why you are 12 Strizers ? You have a link with those 'guardians' ? "

\- " In a way, yes. " Answered Kareem. " But we shall return on that a little later. Before that, we have to explain to you what are the monsters that you saw. "

The prospect of finally learning about these creatures which were still intriguing them so much that it woke those who up to there listened with only half an ear. Especially since Kareem had lost his usual cheerfulness and also because Stanley was more surly than usually.

\- " When they created our world, they saw to it to create a perfect world, with as many defects as qualities. For them, the perfection could not exist without any flaw. But there was something that they had not planned. While they aimed to create their perfect world, they also gave birth to the Nyrans. "

\- " The what ? You meant these monsters, isn't it ? " Asked Cana, bottle in hand but sober enough to follow the speech.

\- "Exactly". Confirmed Stanley by putting his blouse back in place. " The Nyrans were birth from the pride of the guardians who had the boldness to consider themselves perfect while they had defects like everything else. "

\- " And what is their purpose? " Asked Makarov, missing nothing of this discussion which he could not refrain from finding interesting. Stanley resumed his explanation where he'd left it.

\- " They were created by accidents and had by consequence no goal. The guardians had put them aside and it was the error their mistakes. The Nyrans had no purpose and their anger towards the guardians were going to give them one. They began to destroy what the guards had created and after some time destroying, they eventually got to like it. When the guardians finally decided to act, it was too late. They had become extremely powerful and the guardians having definitely lost a part of their power in the creation of the universe, they had no way to stop them by themselves anymore. Since then, the Nyrans live for nothing more than the destruction and the conquest of everything they can get their hands on. "

\- " All of this is very nice and all, but that doesn't explains why they came up to our world. " Jellal's question were more than justifiable and Kareem answered it tit for tat.

\- " But it does explain it. " The mages frowned, not understanding what he meant. " They live to conquer and destroy and since they learnt to travel from a world to the another, they attack all the worlds which matches their taste. And your world is simply their new target. Furthermore, knowing that we still are their main targets, they also aimed to put their hand on everything that can help them to beat us, like any forms of powerful magics or allies. "

\- " And your role in all this, what it is ? What are you for those guardians ? "

\- " We are the new guardians. " Simply answered Stan. " As I said it, they had used a big portion of their powers to create our world, meaning that they were unable to fight so they chose beings to entrust their powers to so that they could fight in their stead. This is how we got our powers. "

\- " But if you are the enemies of those things, why come before them to try and beat us out ? " This question asked by Gajeel is probably the one the mages wanted an answer to the most. It is THE question that was going to heavily influence the rest of the Strizers operations and they knew it. The tension stepped up a notch whereas Stan took the responsibility to answer.

\- " There are 2 reasons, one for every aspect of the question. " Began Stan, taking a profound inspiration before starting. " In the first place, if we came before them, it is to make sure that they have no opportunity to prepare the ground. If they have time to prepare for the army arrival, they will be even harder to face. "

\- " Is that what those scouts we saw in the North? " Cut Juvia, the memory of the black monsters with three yellow eyes returning to her.

\- " Indeed. " This time, Kareem had succeeded Stan to answer to the mage. " They have for objective to collect all the possible and conceivable information so that they can provide for all contingencies when the rest of the army finally arrive here and win as much time as possible. "

\- " And the other reason? Why fighting with us ? " Asked Makarov, looking tensed.

\- " We had to verify if you had or not the capacities to repel this threat by yourselves. And regrettably, you aren't at the moment. "

\- " And so instead of helping us, you fight us ? I admit that the logic of the thing escapes me. " Responded Laxus sarcastically, which slightly made Kareem laugh.

\- " I recognize that the method was not necessarily ideal, but you can't go and dare say that it didn't helped making some of you stronger than before. "

At that, the mages didn't know what to answer and stayed silent. They thought again about all these times when the Strizers could have killed them or render them definitively unable to fight without ever going up to the end of it. For example, the Strizer of the earth could have been able to deprive definitively Gildarts of his magic, but it had only been temporary in the end. They had never understand the interest for them to behave like that but this explanation may give them a reason to all of that. They also couldn't deny that they had globally become stronger since the beginning of the 'hostilities' and just for Natsu, Happy and Lucy, the report was obvious. If Vincenzo had not said what he had told in Karista, Happy probably would have never gone to train, Natsu wouldn't have this awareness about his behavior towards the others and he wouldn't have, in front of Jameson, learnt to control his feelings. And at the same time, Lucy probably wouldn't have the strength to use the key of the Stellar Spirits King.

\- " Why all the fuss just for those monsters ? Your buddy of ice destroyed the Nyrans that we saw. We would have been more than able to take care of it. " Answered Gray who broke the silence, his pride slightly hurt with the idea that he could be seen as weak.

\- " He destroyed them because those were only scouts. " Answered Kareem. " do they are by far the weakest of the Nyrans. And as a Strizer, it's far more easy for us to fight them since we are from the same world. "

\- " And what do you want ? That we joined our strength to face them ? " Asked Laxus disbelievingly, not amused by what both Strizers implied. At that, they both Strizers shrugged.

\- " Yes, it's the idea. "

\- " And you really expected us to forgive you after everything that your friends made us undergo ? "

\- "No". Stan's frank answer took the mages by surprise. " I mean, it's not as if you could really have anything to say to me or Kareem because we did nothing to you. Well, almost." He said turning to Freed who was looking at him through squinted eyes. ". But I ain't going to make as if the others had not been particularly violent in some cases. "

\- " You can say that again. " Answered Happy, standing on a table with Charla and Panther. " The one from the sky was ready to kill Charla. And you dare to say that you do not want to eliminate us ? "

\- " We had to be credible. " Kareem defended himself. " And then, we had enough to repair if we did things really dangerous. " He plunged his hand into a pocket and taken out some kind of grey orb. " It is an object which we were offered. It allows us to return somebody or something to a previous state. If he had really killed Charla, we would have took the body and we would have used one of those things to bring her back to a time where she was alive. And keep her a prisoner so that we still can be perceived like real enemies to you. If you had doubts, you wouldn't have gone all out in our fights. "

\- " So yes we have played you, yes we would have been able to go as far as killing you, yes we hurt you, but without us, most of you will not have become the one that they are today, whether it is on the physical or mental plan. " Stanley had got up, dusting his clothes off. " We don't expect you rely to become our allies that quickly, but know that you cannot face this army without help, and depending on the size of their army, even we might need help to succeed. "

This marked the end of the discussion. The mages remained silent before debating among each other, trying to make a decision. The Strizers looked at them while they made a decision, the stress going up a little in them. When they stopped their discussions, they turned as a single man to the Strizers which waited passively.

\- " Let us admit that we accept your version of the facts and that we team up against these Nyrans, what would you gain ? " Asked Makarov, apparently opened to the discussion, which relieved a little the Strizers.

\- " As we said, if we prevent them from making what they want here, they will have fewer weapons to fight us in our world. " Re-explained Stanley, Makarov nodding his head. " But except for a collaboration, we shall expect nothing in exchange from you. "

\- " I see. But what about these monsters ? What are they really capable of ? "

The Strizers had opened their mouth, ready to answer, when the door of the guild opened suddenly. Everyone turned their head to the door in question and were faced with Daniel, the youngest Strizer who panted as if he had just run a marathon. By sprinting.

\- " Dan ? What the hell are you doing here ? I thought I have told you to go with Jameson near Crocus ? " Stanley had asked his question with a certain fear, especially since the Strizer of the sky looked like he was about to faint out of stress.

\- " They are already here. " The eyes of Kareem and Stanley opened wide under the shock. " Jameson sent me here and… and … You needs to go out, dude. Look at that. "

By ending his sentence, he moved away to allow Stan and Kareem to pass through the door, then all the mages, Daniel giving them a rather weird feeling 'Hey', in particular when those that he had faced, namely Wendy, Romeo, Charla, Happy and Cherrya, who gave him a dark glare. But he didn't paid any attention to it, and once outside, people understood why he was stressed. Not far from Magnolia, on the other side of the city compared to the guild, a big black and threatening mass was walking on the city, the mass in fact made of a few hundred creatures of varied and size and color.

\- " It's their army, isn't it ? " Deduced Laxus, who at the same asked the shocked Strizers for confirmation.

\- " Not really, it's just their basic detachment of basic soldiers. But I didn't thought that they would come so quickly and with so many individual. " Admitted Kareem, his eyes aimed at the Nyrans which approached the city.

\- " You wanted to know what they were really capable of ? " Asked Stanley, turning to look at Makarov. " Well you're about to see it for yourself. Take a seat … " He wrinkled his fingers where sparks appeared " … And enjoy the show. "

 **Here is the 24th chapter, one of my favorite number but that wasn't as lucky as I thought because I lacked some inspiration. Don't worry, I'll be upgrading the next chapter. It is necessary to say that my week not was that simple so please excuse me if the quality have lowered in this one. Despite that, I'll see you next time !**

 **Next time: Reasons part 2. The lightning and the desert bring the big guns out. Alliance or complications ?**


	26. Chapter 25 : The Nyrans dilemna

**Safety everybody! I hope that you are all fine. From my part, concerns of sleeps disturbs me a little but that goes I hold out. Today, lightning and desert takes action whereas the continuous explanations.**

 **I am not the owner of Fairy Tail, Nyrans and Strizers being my personal creations.**

 **Here we go!**

 **Chapter 25: The Nyrans dilemma**

The squadron of Nyrans slowly but surely approached the city, which was not going to stay in one piece for a very long time if they managed to reach the city, and the Strizers were completely aware of that.

\- "We aren't going to be able to prevent them from reaching the city." Noticed Kareem. "What do we do, then ?"

\- "Too bad for the city. We needs to evacuate the inhabitants." The clear-cut opinion of didn't pleased the mages who were held by their side, glaring at the back of the Strizers.

\- "So you're going to let them destroy the city ? And how do you plan to evacuate them ?" Asked Natsu, not liking the idea to let the city be destroyed one more time after what she had already undergone in the past.

\- "A district is already half in ruins because of the fight between Rachel and your girlfriends. And we can easily reconstruct what will be destroyed." Stan had adopted an inflexible tone which clearly meant that it was not better worth pissing him off and contradicting him while he plunged a hand into one of the pockets of his pants. "And don't you worry about the evacuation, I have an idea." He taken out of his pocket an earphone that he placed in his right ears that he then connected to his smartphone, the mages looked with curiosity at the device.

\- "What is that ?" wondered Panther, his head tilted to the side.

\- "To make it short, it is a device of our world which is called 'telephone' which allows us to communicate with other people." It was Daniel who had answered, exhausted but not breathless anymore, standing a little behind his colleagues. "And what he put in his ear is going to allow him to communicate without touching the telephone."

\- "It's Stan, where are you ?" All turned their head to Stanley who, if the observers didn't known for the telephone and the earphone, would have given the impression he was talking alone. "I have an emergency evacuation to be made in Magnolia so come here asap ! And bring your doppelganger." He hung up without further ado and began waiting, his eyes still firmly planted on the Nyrans which were still approaching.

\- "Hum and what are you waiting for exact…"

The question of Romeo died in his throat when the answer appeared in front of his stunned eyes. Stanley's shade began swelling, a form taking shape in the black mass, becoming more and more human and when the mass ended its metamorphosis, a ray of light crossed the city in a blink of an eye and the following moment, the light and the shade had disappeared and let their places to Xun and Esteban respectively, eyes already focused on the group of Nyrans on the horizon. But their presence lifted quite a lot of reaction.

\- "That really had to be him ?" Seethed Jellal, drawing the attention of Esteban who just turned the time to throw a derisive smile at him.

\- "I too am pleased to see you again, _chico_."

\- "It is not the moment to trigger problems pointlessly, Esteban." Xun called his dark partner, the latter giving him a dark glare before returning to the main subject. "You summoned us for an evacuation, is that it ?"

\- "Yeah. We are not going to be able to prevent the fight from taking place in town so we at least need to take the inhabitants in safety. So go work on that and when you will have finished, return to where you were." Stan's orders were clear and the concerned Strizers executed them, but not without a last remark.

\- "Very well, I'll do it at once." Answered Xun whose body began shining more and more.

\- "Stop speaking to me like that, _puta_. Disturbing me for some shit like that, I swear." Spat Esteban, flailing his arms. And in the second which followed, Esteban dived into his shade and Xun disappeared in a flash of light. In the street situated in front of the guild, the mages could see the inhabitants, who watched the approaching monsters with concern, being snatched by a bright body which ran around the whole city at the speed of light or being inhaled by their own shadow who had opened under their feet like a portal. Within a few minutes, every one of the inhabitants had disappeared, leaving a city desert except for the mages and the Strizers, these latter ready to fight.

\- "Wait a second." Stan sighed of annoyance one more time, turning to Mirajane who had interrupted him. "Where did you sent the inhabitants ?"

\- "In a safe place." It was now Kareem who had answered, being afraid that Stanley might lose his mind because for the doctor, this had an obvious answer. "Don't worry, they are fine and we shall return them as soon as we will finished this and rebuild the city."

\- "Well, let's not waste any more time. They spotted us." Stanley had, by pronouncing this sentence, recalled Kareem and the mages who saw that indeed, the Nyrans was rushing at them. The sudden disappearance of the inhabitants had not gone unnoticed by the monsters which had to scan the city in search for any form of energy and when they got the Strizers, they had launched an attack. But Stanley and Kareem, by no means impressed by the enemy stampede, made some step forwards, the mages observants, curious to see what they both were really capable of after what they had demonstrated a little earlier. While the mass of enemies approached, Kareem put a knee on the ground, placing a hand there which took on an orange aura.

 _ **DESERT SAND ROAD !**_

The entire street in front of the Strizers was transformed into a road of sand in which the Nyrans found themselves strongly slowed down. Which benefited Stanley whose hands covered themselves with crackling lightning arc.

 _ **THUNDERCLAP ARROW SHOT !**_

Stanley joined his hands, then pulled a hand towards the back, drawing a bow made of lightning and shot an arrow of thunder which burned out the Nyrans taken in the sand but the others did not stop for all that. Another wave of Nyrans, with black bodies covered with blue marks, followed after the others, each one of them surrounded with a bubble of water which helped them cross the sand, floating above the sand thanks to the bubble. They were faced with Kareem who held his hands towards them.

 _ **DRYING GALE !**_

An extremely dry draft was thrown on the blue Nyrans whose layer of water disappeared in an instant, Stan taking advantage of the opening to get rid of the wave which was still in the middle of the sand.

 _ **LIGHTNING DOWNPOUR !**_

Rising his hands, still covered with lightning, towards the sky which began to darken, Stanley letting his energy invade the sky and, the following moment, he lowered his hands suddenly, making a monstrous quantity of lightning bolt suddenly on the sanded up zone, creating a thick cloud of dust which prevented anyone from knowing what had happened inside. But when this cloud disappeared, the mages witnessed a show for which they weren't ready. Where was until then a huge sandbox was now a kind of rocky formation which blocked the way to the Nyrans, or at least for those who had not been roasted and impaled on stony spikes.

\- " How did he do that ? " Wondered Laxus. Being himself a lightning user, the idea to have others way of using his powers was interesting.

\- " This is fulgurite. " Answered Daniel, stretching his muscles, being ready to intervene just in case. " Those are silicas amorphous sculpture created by lightning strike on the sand. "

\- " And he blocked the street with that? "

\- " Yeah. You needs to know that Stan is probably the most intelligent among us. " Added Daniel, a hand playing with his pendant shaped like an eagle by observing closely the Nyrans. " He knows by heart the properties of electricity and knows better than anyone how to use it in fight. "

\- " So, he is the most powerful of you, if I understand well. " Concluded Bickslow, his dolls flying around him repeating 'understands'.

\- " In term of power, we are all more or less equal, even if certain elements make us more capable in a fight than others. You might guess that the sand is not as destructive as the lightning, but regarding the environmental control and the illusion, he is above when it come to drying up huge zones and the mirages. But with a brain as big, Stan is more often at the top of the tree than at the bottom. "

The mages said to themselves that Daniel might be exaggerating, but by looking at the mass of fulgurite which blocked the street, they couldn't help from admitting that he was right on at least a point : Stan knew how to use his powers. Using such a reaction to eliminate a big part of the opposite army and block the way for the others in the same way, it was really well thought. From their part, Stanley and Kareem had separated to each take care of half of the army of Nyrans.

/-With Kareem-/

Having separated from his partner, Kareem was faced with half of the group of Nyrans who had had to walk around because the main street was blocked by a wide wall of pointy fulgurite. The Nyrans charged at him without any further ado, well decided to eliminate the Strizer, but the guy in question was not more impressed than that. He dodged the blows without any trouble, by distributing some in return, but if the Nyrans were rather easily repelled, other Nyrans with thicker bodies covered with green, grey or brown mark were a harder nut to crack, being capable of enduring much more damages than the others. It meant that Kareem was going to have to spread the good word but with a little more conviction.

 _ **SANDSTORM CUT-THROAT TRAP !**_

A real miniature sandstorm got up and covered all of the district Kareem and the Strizers were in, blinding the creatures. The latter might have appearances of humanoids monsters, they had the same problem as anyone else when they had sand in their eyes. Immobilized by the sand, they couldn't defend themselves any more, even if it wouldn't have been very useful against what was ready for them. Hidden by the sand, moving with the speed of a cheetah, jumping on all the Nyrans present in the storm which were slaughter by the Strizer with blades made by some of the sand in the storm. In only a few seconds, a good tens of the Nyrans collapsed while Kareem reappeared outside of the storm that disappeared a short time later. Some time was needed before the Nyrans which had been spared understands what had happened but once the analysis done, they were more irritated than before and it was a very special squadron that was going to take over. Nyrans with long bodies and thin arms which ended with blade instead of fingers and legs that looked like the back legs of some insects with what seemed to be wheels under their feet. Kareem lost his confident smile by understanding what he had in front of him.

Nyrans Rusher.

Even before he had time to do anything, Kareem was assailed by the Rushers who moved so fast that it was almost impossible to see anything else than trails of dust lifted by their fast movement. Kareem was beaten up without being able to defend himself, the only positive point being the fact that Rusher weren't known for their strength of their blows. But with this rhythm, the lack of power wasn't really important. He had an idea but it was going to be necessary to save time if he wanted to set it up.

 _ **DRYING SHOCKWAVE !**_

The body of the Strizer of the desert covered itself with an orange aura which propagated suddenly around him who dried out everything it touched, including the buildings which fell into dust and some Nyrans, among which were some Rushers who weren't able to protect themselves, falling into dust, totally or partially. But Kareem didn't mind to know if he had hurt Nyrans or not since that he had now time to set up his plan.

 _ **BOTTOMLESS SAND HOLE !**_

Putting his hands on the ground, Kareem concentrated, the ground suddenly shaking under his feet. The Nyrans ignored what was his plan, but they didn't plan to let him do as he please, throwing themselves on him before he was able to do no anything. But it was already too late. In a groan of effort, Kareem dried up so much the ground that he dug a gaping hole in the middle of the city in whom the Nyrans found themselves all trapped, trying to go out of the hole, the bottom of which was so deep that they couldn't see the bottom. But it was a lost cause for the Nyrans who fell into the hole, their shouted resonating in the void into which they had disappeared. But for those who had survived, Kareem had other projects. In a position similar to a prayer, he was standing at the edge of the hole, his power growing at each seconds who passed.

 _ **DESERT DEVIL : GIANT THORNY DEVIL !**_

A deep rumbling noise was heard and felt coming from the depths of the hole, the rumbling becoming more and more powerful as the source of the growl approached opening the hole. After a few seconds, a gigantic brown and orange lizard covered with a scaly and spiky skin appears from the bottom of the hole, swallowing most of the rest of the Nyrans in one bite. With a shrill howling, the lizard returned inside the hole which then collapsed on itself. Kareem dusted his hands, thinking he was done, but in a crashing noise, a creature appeared out of nowhere in front of him, the Strizer eyes opening wide in surprise.

\- " Well, it's going to be a little more challenging than I thought. "

/- Meanwhile, with Stanley -/

After separating the Nyrans, Stanley had left his companion, trusting the capacities of the Strizer of the desert to manage thing on his own. The Strizer of the thunder was, just like Kareem, in front of a squadron of Nyrans which had turned around the fulgurite wall and now faced Stan who seemed bored, tired and annoyed at the same time.

\- " You are already an annoyance on a daily basis, but appearing so early and so violently forced me to change all of our plans. " Stan's reproaches didn't affected the Nyrans which had nothing to do of it, contenting with looking at Strizer, waiting for his first offensive. " I reached such a level of tension and build up stress that I really need to relieve and if I have to relieve myself of it, I'd better do it on something that is worth it. "

 _ **THUNDER GAUNTLET !**_

Gauntlets of lightning formed around Stanley's fists who banged his fists against each other in a provocative gesture which sparked things off, the Nyrans beginning their attack. The Nyrans with some sorts of artillery taking many shapes and sizes on their body opened fire on Stanley. They knew that a direct physical attack was out of the question with an opponent capable of electrocuting them with the slightest touch. Bullets were then raining down on Stan who, in spite of their number, managed to dodge everything without any problem thanks to reflexes that would make a machine jealous. Reaching the shooters, he began distributing the blows, every strike sending, besides the impact, several tens thousands of volts discharges through the Nyrans which were roasted immediately, collapsing with groans of agonies. His superhuman reflexes also allowed him to evade an assault orchestrated by invisible Nyrans which still manage to deal some damages on the Strizer which managed to recover quickly enough to counter-attack.

 _ **POLARIZING WAVE !**_

Using the same technique that the one used in the guild hall, he threw magnetic waves at everything around him, at first sight magnetizing nobody. The important part being 'At first sight'.

 _ **MAGNETIC CANNON !**_

Blue and red sparks formed two spheres in Stanley's hands he used to throw a multitude of blue and red orbs at everything around him, at first sight on nothing. But the invisible Nyrans weren't immunized to a magnetization. So, they had been in charge with positive or negative energy that made them targets of choice, the orbs of electricity striking each of the aggressors until they were all rendered harmless by Stan, the invisible becoming visible again and revealing bodies almost completely black. Stanley was rather satisfied but he wasn't going to be for a long time. A group of Nyrans with thick skin covered with brown or green marks advanced on him, the absence of face not preventing him from knowing that they were decided and confident. A confidence that didn't pleased Stanley whose body crackled literally, his hands covering with thunderstorms cloud that were connected with electric arcs.

 _ **THUNDERSTORM RAILGUN !**_

The discharge of lightning which followed was so powerful that the explosion cracked the stone around Stanley, the windows shattering while a real electric beam rushed on the group of Nyrans which was struck quite hard. But when the dust, lifted by the explosion, fell again, Stanley noticed that the creatures had almost nothing. Stanley understood why just then, a realization that tore away a frustrated 'Tch' out of him.

Insulated Nyrans. Non-conducting Nyrans which were basically immune to electricity.

Taking advantage of the light state of shock of Stan, the Nyrans attacked him, striking him every time they had the opportunity, their hits where marking the body of the Strizer in many places. Back, torso, ribs, face, legs : everything was hit. After approximately 1 minute of ceaseless assault, which with their speed was much more than what one could think at first sight, they threw Stanley in a building which collapsed on the Strizer. The Nyrans remained however careful, the Strizers were known to be tough and they were about to witness it one more time. In an explosion of electric arcs, the fragments of the house were thrown in every directions, letting appear a Stanley covered with lightning, his eyes themselves apparently replaced by orbs of crackling electricity. His hands, on the other hand, weren't covered with lightning bolt, but they began to redden dangerously.

 _ **OVERVOLTAGE : OHMIC HEATED HAND !**_

Stanley's hands weren't red anymore but so hot that they shone almost white. The Insulated were protected against the electricity, we couldn't say the same thing about heat. With hyper fast movement, Stanley got close to every Nyrans which he pierced with his overheated fists, reducing them to nothing more than heaps of carbonized flesh which covered the street. The counter-attack during no more than a few seconds thanks to the superhuman speed of the Strizer and that enough for him. He had left his Overvoltage mode in the second the assault was finished, now panting with fatigue. But regrettably, he witnessed the same unforeseen arrival that Kareem, worth knowing a newcomer who came out of nowhere, who pulled a nth sigh out of Stanley.

\- "And shit."

/- In front of the guild -/

Once the wall of fulgurite was raised, the mages and Daniel had seen the 2 Strizers parting to go each take care of the army of Nyrans, leaving Daniel alone to answer the questions of the mages.

\- "So your job is to get rid of those monsters, that's it ?" Asked Gray, which made Daniel grimace.

\- "It's the general idea, but it's more complicated than that." Answered Daniel, paying attention not to make mistake when explaining. It's a subject already complicated and it was better to avoid any mistakes. "Nyrans are born from the same energy as the first guardian, the same energy which circulates in everything that makes up our world. Even if we eradicate totally the Nyrans, there will always be a part of them that will survive and we will always have to be on our guard, otherwise they could make a strong comeback."

\- "So you've got to protect your world while knowing that they will return every time ?" Summarized Laxus, apparently aware of the difficulty of the task. "You don't have a really useful job."

\- "Yeah, but we have no choice and moreover, we cannot refrain from feeling a light condolence for the Nyrans and resentment for the guardians." In front of the dazed looks of the mages, Daniel explained more precisely. "What I want to say is, how would you feel if you were in their place ? If you had been created to be then put aside because they had no desire to give you a purpose ? And then, we inherited that stupid mission because the first guardians didn't want to assume their bullshit and reacted too late. Which explain the difficulty of the situation we are in."

The mages could only recognize that the situation of the Strizers and their origins were more than difficult. But they didn't have time to feel sorry more than that. With an impact and a crashing noise, Stanley and Kareem's bodies reappeared, like two missiles, getting through two buildings before rolling on the ground to stop a few meters away from the others. They got up, Stanley marked by an open eyebrow, blood in his mouth, several wounds his whole body, the same thing could be said for Kareem whose glasses were twisted and tilted on his face, the forehead(front) swollen with a big bump made purple. And the reason of this state, or rather the REASONS, were two enormous black giants, covered with marks, one oranges and the other one yellow, muscular and as tall as a two-storied building.

\- " What are those things ? " Asked Natsu, Daniel's face contorting while looking at the beasts.

\- " Nyrans Homunculi. Nyrans which are basically piled on top of each other to create giants which accumulate the power of the Nyrans which compose them. Real pain in the ass to take care of. "

\- " I have the feeling that your buddies are in for a hard time. " Said Gray, but Daniel didn't seemed that worried.

\- " Not really. I have the feeling that they are fed up. Which means … " His sentence stayed on hold one moment, the time for Stanley to put a hand on the metallic headband covered with engraving in forms of snakes which he had in his hair whereas Kareem took out of his pocket a sort of bracelet around which was rolled up some sort of lizard. " … That they decided to stop playing. "

 _ **DESERT IGUANA / THUNDER COBRAS !**_

The metallic objects then began to shine and the animals which were on them started to move and to grow. After a few seconds, a wide metal iguana was standing on Kareem right shoulder and two cobras, also metallic, were rolled up around Stan's neck. If the appearance of those animals was already surprising, what followed was even more surprising. At Stan and Kareem order, the creatures jumped of their owner and, while they were in the air, started to bend and to twist their bodies, changing shape, and after a few seconds of folding, Kareem had in his hand an ax made from the iguana, the blade being the dewlap of the iguana (Nda: the kind of skin hanging under the head) whereas Stan had in hand two Desert Eagle, each made of a cobra, the head of which was at the end of the cannon.

 _ **DESERT AX / THUNDER DEAGLE !**_

\- " … Seriously ? What was that ? Animals or weapons ? "

\- " Both. " Answered Daniel to Cana. " They are Weapon Beast. We all have one of it and they are at the center of our powers. You're go to see that with them, we aren't playing anymore. "

Stanley clocked his weapons at one of the giants, making a flurry of electric bullets on the Nyran which, in spite of its big resistance to the electricity, was pushed away, every impact pushing him back a few step. From his part, Kareem swung his ax at his own opponent, either to counter its knocks, or to push him back too. The disconcerting ease with which they pushed away their enemies was exceptional, and when came the moment to finish it, they loaded their powers. The blade of the ax began covering itself with an orange light, Stanley sticking the cannon of his weapons one against the other, his energy circulating through the gun which filled the two with the electrical energy.

 _ **DESERT AX HEAVY CUT !**_

 _ **THUNDER DEAGLE TESLA CANNON !**_

Kareem swung his ax down on one of the golems whereas Stan opened fire and the electric power accumulated in his weapons unfurled on the monster, the first one ending cut clear in half, a blade of orange energy continuing beyond the Nyran on a good ten meters, the monster in front of Stan having literally been pulverized by the electric shock, only the bottom of his body having survived, what was also the case of what was behind the Nyran which had also been pulverized. Heaving a sigh of relief, the Strizers changed their weapons back into animals which took back their positions on the shoulders of their owners, the iguana having a nap while the cobras looked at the mages with an almost haughty air.

\- " Well, that's done. But it was only the beginning. " Heaved Stanley, turning to the mages. " So, what did you think of it ? "

Makarov, which had followed the scene with interest, having missed nothing, from the fulgurite to the end of the fight, but also the huge lizard which had appears in the middle of the city or the thunderclaps which had made the city shake. The fairies looked at their master, waiting for his decision which arrived after a few seconds of reflection.

\- " Very well, we are going to TRY to work with you. " The decision of Makarov pleased the Strizers but not the mages who were about to make their refusal known. Which they would have done if he didn't have to add a condition, his face hard. " But because those are your opponents, I expect that you do everything to protect my 'children'. If something bad happens to them because of you, know that those monsters would be the least of your problem. Am I clear ? "

The Strizers agreed, satisfied with the agreement, which the mages weren't liking that much. If Makarov had chosen to try and work with them, they would team up with the Strizers but a thing was sure. With what they had lived with the other Strizers, the cohabitation was going to be rowdy.

 **Here we are ! I hope that this chapter will have pleased you. Leave a review if you liked it or if you have a remark. See you !**


	27. End of a fic, a story that will live

Hello guys!

Well, I decided to mark this fic as ended for two reasons. The first one is because I made the decision to cut this history in two arc, the second part will be in another fic. The second reason, the main one by the way, is because I still miss ideas on what this second part is going to contain. So I decided to end this fic and begin to gather ideas for the suite (if you have some, do not hesitate and give them to me), which is also going to give me the time to invest myself more in my other fic.

I hope that you will understand my choice. Anyway, I would like to let you know that your support, your advice and more simply the fact that you read this story was heart-warming to me. I will be back one day with the second part, but in the meantime, do not hesitate to consult my other fic that I'm sure you'll like and that will help you wait for the next part.

See you later !


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